Love is Blonde
by Szabotage
Summary: Love is a Bang! A renegade ninja with a penchant for art and explosions meets a headstrong kunoichi who likes flowers and bossing people around! At long last, a New Chapter! Itachi confronts Deidara and more!
1. Chapter 1

Love is Blonde

By Maria Szabo

Chapter One

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

It was the searing hiss that alerted him, as he stood in the darkening meadow listening to Tobi natter on about where the others could be. Deidara felt it coming towards his head. The chakra knife screamed as it split the air around it. He was able to dodge it, but barely. His nerves were tingling as he took a defensive pose and scanned the area around them.

"Team! Fan out!"

He heard the barest whisper of a deep male voice. An adult, then? And the youthful voices that murmured in reply—that could only mean a jounin with a training team.

His fingers flew in a jutsu and he faded into the background against the rocks. It was just a common jutsu from his home village, one of the first that the children of Iwagakure learned, but it was surprisingly effective. He only hoped that idiot Tobi had taken cover somewhere. He would not be held responsible if that jerk was exposed.

It wasn't long before the team came into view. Two? No. Three. That was okay, then. He could easily take down three if he needed to, even without using one of his explosives.

"Anything?" A tall, well-built bearded man crouched on the ground, a roughly serrated chakra blade in his hand. The other knife must have been his.

"Not here," a huge, towering boy shrank down into a more compact form. "How about you, Ino?"

A graceful figure leapt into view from the cover of the forest. "Nothing here, either. Sensei, are you sure you weren't imagining things?"

"I'd rather over-react than not act," the big man growled, "but I could have sworn I heard somebody talking." He stood, dug into a pocket on his vest, and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. With a practiced hand, he tapped the end until a single stick came into view. From another pocket, he pulled a pack of matches and struck one on the sole of his shoe, causing the flame to spurt and sputter. He quickly lifted the match to the cigarette trailing from his lips and let it ignite the tobacco. Inhaling deeply, he let the smoke come drifting from his mouth in the midst of a shallow sigh.

"My headset has been acting up all day today, though, so it might be that I picked up a stray signal." He unhooked a small wired device from his ear and peered at it suspiciously. "Ah, well, it probably was nothing, then. We've been patrolling for hours. Let's take a break for a few minutes, shall we?"

"No problem." The chubby boy immediately reached into his backpack and pulled out what looked to be a pack of chips. One quick tear and he was munching away.

"Chouji!" the girl exclaimed, "Asuma-sensei said he was going to treat us to barbeque after we got back! Can't you wait?"

"No," replied the boy, shortly, not slowing in his pace of consumption. "I'm hungry now."

"Ino," warned the large man. "Don't start. We got the rest of the patrol to get through."

She was a real beauty, that girl, Deidara thought appreciatively. She'd retrieved a small comb out from the pack situated on the curve of her luscious rear and was running it through the ends of her pale blonde ponytail. A few pulls, and then she replaced the comb in her pack. "It's just that we got this boring patrol, while Shikamaru gets to proctor at the exam…"

The man laughed. "Trust me, it's not all that interesting. Lots of paperwork, that sort of thing. Personally, I'd rather be out in the field."

"But he gets to meet up with some of the ninja from other villages…"

"Well, who knows? We might run into some of the foreigners ourselves, out here. The teams are still arriving for the new Chuunin exam, you know. We just have to make sure they don't go poking around where they have no business."

"But we're having to do that every day for the next week!" The beauty wandered dangerously close to where Deidara was hiding, and took a seat on one of the fallen rocks. Almost within touching distance, he thought, and then wondered why that made any difference.

"You're upset because we're going to miss seeing the finals, aren't you?"

"Not to mention the opening ceremonies today. No wonder we haven't run across anything." She shrugged and leaned down from her seat. Her hands pulled at some flowering weeds that were growing nearby. "Speaking of opening ceremonies, weren't you supposed to be taking Kurenai-sensei there tonight?"

"That's personal, you know that…"

The chubby boy paused in his eating to smirk. "You were, weren't you?"

"Brats." The man went a little red. "Okay, yeah. But she'll understand. It's not my fault we pulled the short stick for this patrol. She knows that." In spite of his words, the man sounded a bit uncertain.

Some delicate blue blossoms, a few green leaves, and a bit of lacy white weed found their way into the girl's hands. She deftly wove them into a bouquet, stopping every now and then to view her creation with a critical eye. After some further adjustments, she nodded and pulled out some nearly-invisible twine from her pack, the sort used to set traps. She wrapped the twine around the stalks and knotted it.

"You men are so clueless," she complained, and rose from her seat, again coming so close that Deidara could catch her scent, a heady mixture of roses, lilies and sweat. She walked over to the large man and presented him with the fresh bouquet. "Give her these when you get back. That'll help, trust me."

"Ino…" the man's voice sounded exasperated, but he took the bouquet.

"I know, I know. It's none of our business." She turned to share a smile with her chubby teammate and her eyes flew open. "Chouji! Don't you dare leave that trash on the ground!"

The boy laughed and folded his empty bag into a small square, which he placed in one of his vest pockets. "I wasn't going to. Do you wanna finish the patrol now?"

"Let's go," the girl agreed. She turned back to her teacher. "Sensei, it's almost the end of our shift. Chouji and I can take it from here."

"What?"

"Flowers don't last forever, sensei. Love doesn't either. You should give them to her while they're fresh!" With a cheery wave, she leapt into the treeline of the forest. The boy laughed and winked at the man, then leapt after her.

"You kids…" the man finished his cigarette, dropped it and ground it under his heel. He took a long look at the little bouquet. "Guess I don't have a choice, huh?"

He sprang up into the trees, but went another direction.

A few minutes later, a figure burrowed itself out from underground. "That was a close one, hey, Deidara-sempai?"

"How the hell did you know I was here?" He should still be invisible.

"Saw you," replied Tobi. As usual, his tone varied between fawning and disdain. The newest member of Akatsuki brushed the dirt from his cloak. "Wasn't that hard."

"Sure it wasn't, yeah," Deidara muttered. He released the jutsu with a quick hand-seal. Tobi had been one of Zazu's underlings, not his, so he wasn't completely familiar with what his new partner was capable of, except perhaps annoying people to death. "You heard what those leaf-nin said?"

Tobi nodded. "They'll be patrolling this area for the next week or so. Doesn't seem like there's a lot of them, though, does it?"

"Use your head. Orochimaru tore this place up three years ago, yeah? Took a lot of them out, is what I heard. It takes a while to recover from something like that, yeah." He should know. He'd left Iwagakure half in ruins, back when he ran off. It had taken them years to fix the damage.

"So what are we going to do? We're supposed to rendezvous here with Itachi-san and Kisame-san before we head for the Land of the Mists. What if we get caught by a patrol?"

"Don't be such a pussy. We won't get caught. And if we do…" his right hand opened to reveal an abstract little clay bird, "it'll be their problem, yeah."


	2. Chapter 2

Love is Blonde

By Maria Szabo

Chapter Two

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

Patrol was the downside of being a ninja, Ino thought as she manuevered her way from tree to tree, feeling the rough texture of the bark as her hands brushed against the trunks. It was one thing to go on a mission, with a set goal in mind, like protecting a daimyo or spying on another country. With a general patrol, all she ended up doing was running around in the forest, scaring up occasional wildlife. This was genin-level work, not the sort of thing an up-and-coming young kunoichi should have to be dealing with.

She had been feeling restless for some time now. Although she had finally passed the Chuunin exam, she still felt keenly the fact that she was the weakest of her teammates. Shikamaru had advanced so far that he was soon to be promoted to jounin-level, and ever since that failed attempt to retrieve Uchiha Sasuke three years ago, Chouji had applied himself with renewed spirit, and looked to follow in his father's footsteps as one of the most physically powerful shinobi in the village.

Even Sakura had become stronger—she had teamed with Ino and Chouji during their Chuunin exams since both of their original teams were incomplete, and Ino had been shocked by the sheer physical power her former rival had shown. And a bit jealous, too, she had to admit. This was Sakura, after all, and Ino thought she would always have the edge on her, at least. But now she wasn't so sure.

Certain, she had progressed in the past few years herself, but it felt like she was being left behind. That wasn't a feeling she enjoyed.

"Does it bother you, Daddy," she once asked as her father sat down to dinner, his face drawn in exhaustion from yet another mission, "that our clan's jutsu is so weak?"

He stopped eating and looked up at her with hurt eyes. "We're not weak."

"But we can't fight openly either, can we?"

"No," he admitted, "however, we're shinobi. We're supposed to stay in the shadows."

"Sakura doesn't."

Her father sighed. "That Haruno girl is being trained by the Hokage herself. And she's to become a medical ninja. You can't keep comparing yourself to her, surely?" He took another sip from his soup bowl and followed it with a few bites of rice, his chopsticks clicking lightly against one another. "Besides, being the strongest isn't necessarily the best way to survive. Look at the Uchiha. They had power and prestige, and then that prodigy of theirs went mad and wiped out the entire clan! And the Hyuuga, you'd not want to be in their sandals, I assure you. They've turned against their own kin in order to protect their status. You can feel the tension anytime you go near their compound."

Ino bit her lip, and her father's face softened.

"I'm sorry, princess. I forgot you use to like that younger Uchiha boy." He reached over and patted her hand comfortingly. "What we Yamanaka do is important to the village, too. It's not flashy, and the gods know I don't get near the pay that Hyuuga-dono or Hitake-san gets, but our clan is still alive, together and happy. Stability serves the village too, you know."

She gave her father a sheepish grin, and changed the subject. They spoke of the shop, and the latest gossip, and the seeds that her father had picked up while on his last mission in the Land of Grass. She had to admit, her family was a lot happier than many she had known in the village.

The sun was so bright today—it danced on the leaves of the oaks and maples that flourished in this part of the forest, making patterns with shadows against the path below. If she was to be stuck on patrol, it was not so bad a day to be outside.

Slowing her pace, she perched on a branch for a moment, trying to decide her way. If she went right, she'd make it around to the pond on the other side of the knoll, and doubtless meet up with Chouji or Asuma-sensei on their rounds. But if she went left, she'd end up at the meadow and have to double-back over already-covered ground to make her way back to her circuit. On the other hand, it was early summer and the meadow would be in bloom, sporting an extraordinary array of wildflowers. She laughed to herself, remembering the look on Asuma-sensei's face when she handed him that bouquet yesterday. It was so funny. He was a bluff and rather laid-back sort of man, but when it came to his relationship with Kurenai-sensei, he could was more like a schoolboy. A very, very shy schoolboy, she thought, although she knew that it wasn't an innocent relationship by any means. More than once, she and her teammates had run into Asuma-sensei first thing in the morning, coming from the direction of Kurenai-sensei's apartment. Ino had figured out a long time ago, even before Shikamaru, the reason that their teacher always got nervous when Kurenai-sensei was around. He hid it well, but not well enough. Once the boys had realized what was going on, they all had had a grand time teasing Asuma-sensei about his girlfriend. Shikamaru always acted like love was a waste of effort, but Chouji really got into the spirit of things. If it wasn't for the fact that it was Chouji, she might have suspected a romantic streak.

While she was amused with watching her teacher's snail-paced love-affair, it did make her wonder what kind of man she would end up falling for. Shikamaru and Chouji she dismissed out-of-hand. They were like the brothers she never had. She used to dream endlessly about Uchiha Sasuke, but he had turned against the village and hurt her partners—she couldn't forgive that. Hyuuga Neji was hot, but he always treated her like she was beneath his notice. That partner of his, Lee, was nice, but too goofy. Kiba, who she knew from the academy, always smelled funny, and Aburame Shino…no. Just no.

Naruto had gone off to train somewhere for the past few years, along with that strange old man who had become his new teacher.off Now that he was back, she found him as loud and irritating as ever. That was too bad, because he'd grown up a bit and certainly looked a lot cuter than he used to. Some of the older guys in the village weren't bad, but no one really caught her fancy, although they certainly tried. She remembered the time her father had walked into the shop when Shiranui Genma had been in there trying to flirt with her. She learned a lot about the extent of the Shinranshin no jutsu that day. Poor Genma never knew what hit him.

Sometimes, she wondered if it might not be a bad idea to hook up with someone from outside the village. It seemed to be working for Shikamaru, although he always denied having any relationship with Temari of the Sand. Ino knew better, though. There had to be some reason why the Kazekage kept sending his pretty sister to deliver messages to Kohonagakure. Maybe he was trying to set them up?

She'd seen some interesting foreign guys when she'd taken her Chuunin exam a couple of years ago, but she was too focused on getting through the competition to pay much attention to them, except to find out what jutsus they might use against her or her team. But this time, since she wasn't competing, she had hoped to get to talk to some of the foreigners and see what they were like. But then her team was assigned on patrol duty for the duration of the entire exam. She just bet her father and his old drinking buddies had something to do with her getting this assignment. Daddy was always a little too overprotective.

The treeline was thinning and she could see she was getting closer to the meadow. Good, she could use a break. She braced to jump down from the canopy of leaves, but stopped short. There was someone there. And it wasn't anyone that she knew.

To Be Continued


	3. Chapter 3

Love is Blonde

By Maria Szabo

Chapter Three

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

Ah, sweet silence! Deidara laid back against the rock he was sitting on and closed his eyes in relief. After enduring Tobi's nonstop inanity all day, he'd bluntly suggested to his partner that he could make himself useful by buying some food supplies for them in the nearest village. Tobi, of course, began arguing that they should both go, but Deidara had shut him up with the observation that Tobi, who wasn't known in the Fire Country, would have a better chance of accomplishing the task without incident. After all, he himself had been seen when trying to nab that Kyuubi brat. Granted, the Leaf-nin thought him dead, but why take chances?

Tobi accepted the excuse, and headed off to a small hamlet that they'd passed a few miles back. Zetsu had appeared, in that creepy way of his, late last night to let them know Itachi and Kisame had been delayed and were still a few days out from the Fire Country. They were instructed to wait where they were until the four of them could roundezvous. If it was up to him, they'd just move on towards the Water Country, but Kisame actually had some maps and codes that they needed for their mission. Bringing Itachi into the Fire Country was a bit risky, but it would take them days out of their respective paths to meet elsewhere.

The day was turning warm, so he had draped his cloak over the rock to lay on. It was a lot warmer here than where he had come from—if there was anything he missed about the Earth Country, it was the cold weather. This meadow they'd stumbled on last night seemed to be a good place to wait. It was secluded, well off the main road, and something about the place satisfied him aesthetically. Without Tobi around, he could relax and concentrate on some new designs for his explosives. It had been much easier when Sasori-danna was still alive, since they both could argue about design forever, and their discussions always sparked ideas.

He had already thought up two interesting possibilities when a rustle in the trees outlining the meadow disturbed his train of thought. Instantly alert, he sat up, grabbed a couple of kunai and scanned the edge of the woods. He had lost his left eye during his "audition" for Akatsuki, but Sasori-danna had fashioned him a suitable replacement. Sasori had called it "a crude enhancement", arguing that he could do much better with something from his corpse collection, but Deidara refused to part with the device, liking the square-upon-square design. It complimented the Stone symbol on his headband, even if his hair usually covered them both.

Nothing…nothing…wait. There. One crouching in the trees. He swung his gaze around to other likely spots, but saw no others. Oh, well, better get it over with.

"Come out. I can see you already, yeah."

There was another rustle.

"I won't hurt you." Maybe he could talk his way out of this one. Zetsu had been very clear about the Leader not wanting the members of Akatsuki to draw attention to themselves.

Another movement, then a figure jumped down into the meadow. It was that girl—the kunoichi he'd seen here last night, looking even better than she had before. He had remembered her exquisite figure and pale hair, tied back in a fashion similar to his own, but he hadn't noticed the stunning blue eyes. She took a defensive posture, kunai in hand.

"Stay still!" she warned. "You're not from this country, are you?"

"No."

"Where are you from, then? I can't see your headband clearly."

Bossy little thing, isn't she, he thought. "I'm from the Earth Country. Iwagakure, yeah."

"What are you doing here?"

"Taking a break."

"No, I mean in the Fire Country." She sounded exasperated. It was cute.

"Ah. Escort duty, yeah." They'd passed by a party from his home village about a week ago, carrying the banner of the Daimyo, on the road to Kohonagakure. "Got the old man settled in, so I thought I'd take a breath of fresh air, yeah."

"Oh. I heard that the Daimyo and the Tsuchikage had arrived yesterday. Do you have your travel papers with you?"

He ducked his head. "They're back at our quarters. Be a dear, don't report me, yeah?" He hoped he sounded appropriately contrite. "I'll get a reprimand and a dock in pay, yeah."

She glowered suspiciously at him for a moment, but then the corner of her mouth tugged upward. "I shouldn't but…alright. So why are you all the way out here?"

"Oh. Saw the place when I was scouting, yeah." He patted the rock he was sitting on. "I liked the place. Thought I'd come out here and relax some, yeah."

"Isn't it great, though?" She beamed. Her lips were the color of raspberries, ripe against her fair skin, and her face was perfectly proportioned. That girl really was a looker.

"It's one of my favorite spots," she continued. "You wouldn't believe the number of wildflowers that bloom in this area! I like the design, too. The asymmetrical shape with those rocks you're on against the field and the shape of the trees…it's really something."

He blinked. That was not something he expected to hear coming out of that girl's mouth. "That's it, yeah. I couldn't quite put my finger on it. It feels like it was planned, yeah. Not quite natural."

She laughed. "You're right. It isn't natural. The First Hokage made this place."

"No way. The trees are too mature…"

"No, that was one of his jutsu. They say he liked to design places like this because he was trying to work out how to build Konohagakure. There's a number of them around, but I like this one the best."

This was an odd situation, he thought, to say the least. On one hand, he really ought to finish talking himself out of the situation and retreat, but on the other hand, he was enjoying the girl's conversation. After several days with only Tobi for company, though, he supposed that it was only natural.

"What's your name?" she asked, suddenly.

"Dei…" he started automatically, then stopped himself. Bad call. While the Leaf-nin's Bingo Book probably wouldn't have a current photograph of him, his name was almost certainly in there.

"Dei?"

"Dei! Dei of the Stone, yeah." Bless the girl and her cluelessness. "What's yours?" He knew already, but it would sound strange not to ask.

"Ya…Ino. Ino of the Leaf."

He laughed. She obviously wasn't used to talking directly to foreigners. It sounded like she was about to say her family name. Ninja usually omitted their clan names during introduction, unless they were from the same village. Otherwise, the opponent might get some idea of their arsenal of jutsu.

"And I take it you're patrolling?"

A look of annoyance crossed her pretty face. "Unfortunately. I need to get back to it. Now, you promise me you'll not cause any trouble while you're here?"

He raised his right hand. "I have no intention of doing anything but relaxing, yeah."

"What's that on your hand?" The brilliant blue eyes squinted a bit to get a closer look.

Damn, he forgot about that. "Jutsu," he replied, shortly, and curled his fingers down to cover the mouth that gaped in his palm.

"Ah," she nodded and left it at that. It wasn't polite to ask about body-transforming jutsu. "Well, I'll be going, then."

"Enjoy your patrol!" He laughed at the reproving look the girl gave him and playfully waved good-bye to her as she made her way back into the forest.

He crossed his arms over his chest, and leaning back against the rock again, he shut his eyes. He wondered what Sasori-danna would have thought. He was forever nagging at Deidara to think before he acted, rather than going straight into battle-mode. Then again, it probably was just as well that Sasori-danna wasn't there. He would have wanted to add an exquisite girl like that to his collection, and that would be a pity.

The birds sang in the leaves as he let his mind wander back to his designs, but for some reason, instead of the abstract construction of circles and angles, he kept thinking about curves. Strange, yeah.

To Be Continued


	4. Chapter 4

Love is Blonde

By Maria Szabo  
Chapter Four

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

At the end of their patrol, the team met up on the main road into the village. The team scheduled to replace them, a group of older genin led by a female jounin, was already there waiting for them.

"Anything of interest?" the jounin asked.

"Not much. Ran into a party of Grass-nin, headed for town." Asuma-sensei took out a cigarette from his vest pocket and lit up, cupping his hand around the wavering flame. "Said they were delayed. Evidently, there was a bridge collapse before they left their border and they had to take a detour."

"I saw them, too," said Chouji. "Over by the fifth marker. Same story."

"If they made it that far, they'll probably try to press on through to the village tonight, then," the jounin nodded her head. "We'll keep an eye out for them. Anything else?"

Ino wondered if she should mention the Stone-nin that she saw sunning himself earlier in the day, and decided against it. That was several hours ago and he probably had come back to the village by now. "Not really, no."

Chouji shook his head and Asuma shrugged.

"Guess that's it, then," he said. "We'll leave it to you, Oboro-sensei. I think Gennosuke and his team are scheduled to relieve your shift?"

"Yes. By the way, the Hokage wants you to get caught up on today's briefing. I was told to send your group up to her office once you got back."

"Will do. Have a safe one!"

"See you tomorrow!" Oboro-sensei waved, and led her group forward. They headed out towards the forest with some speed.

Asuma, Chouji and Ino made their way to the Main Gate. The huge wooden doors were closed for the evening, but the guard let them through a smaller entrance to the side.

"That was pretty boring," commented Chouji after they thanked the guard and entered the village. "Those Grass-nin were about the only human beings I saw all day."

Asuma nodded in agreement. "I passed a few merchants on the main road, but their paperwork was all in order."

"Are they coming for the Exams?" Ino asked.

"These are the biggest Chuunin Exams since Orochimaru attacked. We've got some good candidates this time and a lot of bigwigs have come to check 'em out."

Once again, she wondered if she should bring up that Stone-nin she had seen in the meadow. But he actually hadn't been doing anything besides sleeping, and reporting that he didn't have papers would get him in trouble. He didn't look at that dangerous. His left arm had been wrapped, and he had held it at an odd angle, as if he'd been wounded. That would explain why he was on escort duty—even a wounded shinobi could easily take out ordinary bandits and highwaymen. He spoke a little funny, too, with that "yeah" in almost every sentence, but he had an interesting voice, low and resonating, with a rumbling undertone like an earthquake. It didn't match his delicate looks at all, but that made him seem more interesting. She supposed she should give the poor man a break. Besides, he was hot, almost as sexy as Sasuke.

"Speaking of paperwork," Asuma started, "who wants to file today's report?"

"Chouji does!" Ino volunteered.

Her teammate shot her a dirty look. "Why me?"

"It's your turn. I did it yesterday, remember?"

He grumbled a little, but finally agreed. "Fine. But Asuma-sensei, you file tomorrow, okay?"

"Tell you what. If you agree to file tomorrow as well, I'll treat you to an extra serving of BBQ after we get debriefed."

"Two extra servings."

"You're a hard man, Chouji."

"Food is concerned. The Akimichi Clan shows no mercy!"

"Sad, but true," Asuma-sensei's broad face took on a mournful countenance. "Let's get over to the Hokage's office, shall we?"

Ino followed them, down the twisted sidestreets to the large, circular building that dominated the center of town. Kohonagakure was not built on straight lines. The village had an organic structure to its design, courtesy of the First Hokage. Newer buildings were fashioned in the same manner. To outsiders, it probably was very confusing to navigate, but that was precisely the point. The convoluted streets would slow invading forces, while allowing the Leaf-nin, long familiar with their village's twists and turns, a distinct advantage in battle. She liked how it all came together. It had a rich, organic fell that she had never seen in other towns. In a way, Kohonagakure was like a flower arrangement, sculpted in wood and stone instead of weeds.

They took the steps up to the Hokage's office two at a time. Asuma-sensei and Chouji were probably both as eager to get this over with as she was. If she went home past the lodging where the Earth Country delegation was staying, maybe she would run into that Dei-san again. It would be nice to see him again. He'd been easy to talk to. Maybe she could show him where the best restaurants were…suddenly, her stomach made an unladylike growl, which she hoped no one would notice.

No such luck. "Hungry, Ino?"

She blushed. "Shut up, Chouji. Let's just get this over with."

Her teammate just chuckled. She'd known Chouji since they were kids. His father had been on the same team as her dad when they were gennin, along with Shikamaru's father. The three still got together whenever they were all home from missions at the same time. They'd hang out at the local bar, drinking themselves into a stupor. Sometimes, her dad would bring them back to their house, over the flower shop, and they'd play cards and reminisce about the good old days. They'd stay all night if she didn't go and fuss at them to go home. Her father would inevitably get all weepy, while Uncle Chouza would laugh good-naturedly and Uncle Shikaku would grouse that there must be something in the water that made Kohona women so bossy.

The Hokage's office wasn't empty. Shikamaru gave them a neglectful wave from where he stood in the corner. There were several other shinobi present as well, mainly chuunin who had been assigned proctor duties at the exam, and a few jounin who looked as if they had just come in from a mission.

"So what's up?" Ino wondered as Shikamaru made his way over to their team. "Seems rather sudden, doesn't it?"

"Not sure. We were told to meet here after the written exam."

"How is that going?" Asuma-sensei asked. "Ibiki running it again?"

"Yeah. You can imagine the carnage."

"Figures. He loves messing with those kids."

Shikamaru yawned. "I suppose. It was a bother having to watch them. I can't believe how obvious some of them were with their cheating."

"Hey, they all can't cheat as well as we did!" Ino gloated.

"I doubt any of them has someone on their team who can possess people," Asuma laughed. "So how many were culled?"

"Almost seventy percent."

"Ouch. Harsh."

"Yeah, well. What about you? How was patrol?"

Chouji snorted. "Pretty dull, but you'd have liked it. Nice weather, not much to do."

"Man, I hate you guys."

Ino wrapped an arm around his shoulders and give him a bit of a hug. "Don't blame us for your own efficiency."

Silence fell as the Hokage walked in, followed as ever by her assistant, Shizune. Tsunade looked annoyed and a bit tired.

"I'll make this quick," she snapped. "We've received information that the criminal organization Akatsuki might be on the move again. There are reliable reports that Uchiha Itachi, who many of you might remember, and his partner, Hoshigake Kisame, from the Land of Water, were spotted not far from our borders. They may have even crossed over into the Fire Country by now."

A hand was raised. Ino recognized it as Genma's. "Any idea why they'd be coming here now?"

"Several," Tsunade admitted, "But we're not sure which is the right one. Kakashi, Gai and their teams faced down some of the Akatsuki a short time ago, when they were called to assist the Nation of Wind. They engaged four of them: Itachi, Kisame, and two others. One was identified as Sasori of the Red Sands, who has been missing for over 20 years. The other was believed to be Deidara, an S-class criminal from the Earth Country."

There was a murmur around the room. It was known in the village that Kakashi and Gai had led their teams on a mission to Sunagakure, and that Kakashi had been wounded, but little was said otherwise about what had happened. That in itself was not unusual—missions were often confidential and information was usually shared on a "need to know" basis.

"Sasori was confirmed killed during the engagement. We believe that Deidara died as well, although we were unable to recover a body."

"Why not?" someone asked.

"He blew himself up. It was only through Kakashi's intervention that the rest of the team were not killed as well." Tsunade frowned, a line of worry crossing her forehead. "A search was made, but Itachi and Kisame were not to be found."

"As I mentioned before, there are several good reasons as to why they might be coming here now. Revenge, perhaps; Gai fought Kisame to a standstill, and he's not the sort to forget that sort of challenge. The Chuunin Exam could also be an attraction—with the number of daimyo attending, Akatsuki would have an easy target. Also, they could know that Kakashi is wounded, and with Sasuke gone, he is the only person remaining in our village that can utilize the Sharingan. Itachi could strike at will, and we'd be hard-pressed to defend against him."

"That doesn't seem like him, though," a woman spoke up from the back. Turning, Ino recognized her as Kiba's older sister. Her three dogs clustered around her in a protective circle.

"You knew him, Hana?"

"I worked with him in ANBU, before he left the village. That kind of attack doesn't seem like his style."

Asuma-sensei raised his hand. "I agree. You might not be aware of this, since you weren't living in the village at the time, but the Uchiha Clan tended to look down on Kakashi. They didn't think someone outside their bloodline could learn to utilize the Sharingan. Itachi even commented about that the last time we faced off with him, three years ago."

"We'll keep that in consideration, then. Let's increase security around the daimyo, all of them. I want all patrols to keep a sharp watch for any sign of those two. Shizune will be handing out flyers of the latest photos that we have of them, with a short dossier. Familiarize yourselves with this material."

The Hokage's delicate face hardened. "One last thing. While it would be helpful to catch Itachi and Kisame alive so that we could question them, both of these men are extremely dangerous. If you find yourself in a combat situation, DO NOT HESITATE TO KILL. Is that understood?"

The room erupted in a chorus of "Aye."

Tsunade nodded. "Then you are dismissed."

Ino examined the flyer as her team made their way out of the room. "He doesn't look all that different from before, does he?"

"You knew him?" Asuma-sensei asked, startled.

"I met him a few times when I was little," she admitted. "He caught me and Sakura following Sasuke-kun home a couple of times."

She remembered the incident as if it had happened yesterday. She and Sakura were trying to be so sneaky, tailing Sasuke-kun so that he wouldn't see them. It was her idea, of course—Sakura at that time was willing to admire him from afar, but Ino wanted more than that. She wanted Sasuke-kun to acknowledge her.

Once outside the broad black-and-red wooden fence that bordered the Uchiha Clan's compound, they peeked around the open gates to get a good look inside. That was when Itachi first came up behind them. She didn't know who he was then, of course, beyond someone from the Clan. He asked, in a bored tone, what they thought they were doing. She looked at Sakura, Sakura looked back at her and then they both ran away.

The next day, she decided they should try again. This time, they were more successful, getting past the gate and seeing which of the houses lining the complex that Sasuke-kun had entered. Suddenly, from out of nowhere, the man from yesterday appeared. Sakura froze. Ino grabbed her hand and tried to made for the gate, but he cornered them.

"Now," he said, with the kind of terrible glare that only the Uchiha Clan was capable of giving, "It seems that you are trespassing on private property. Give me a reason why I shouldn't turn you over to the police."

"Don't do that…" Sakura started, but Ino jumped in.

"We weren't doing anything wrong! We were just following Sasuke-kun because we wanted to know where he lived."

"Sasuke?" He blinked. "Why him?"

"Because he's cool! And we like him, don't we, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura just squeaked. She was so timid back then, it was pathetic.

"Really?" He drawled and squat down in front of them. Up close, he didn't seem so old. He looked like a slightly-bigger version of Sasuke-kun. Ino remembered that Sasuke-kun had and older brother, and she wondered if this was the Itachi that was so often brought up as an example in school.

"Are you Sasuke-kun's brother Itachi?" she asked.

"Yes. And as for you two…" he considered them for a moment with those piercing eyes, then with a quick motion, he flicked Sakura on her wide brow. "Don't waste your time. There's nothing the Uchiha Clan has to offer you. Or anyone else, for that matter."

He moved to repeat the motion on Ino, but she kicked him hard on the shin and pulled on Sakura's hand. They ran away from the strange boy like there was no tomorrow. It wasn't long after that encounter that the massacre had occurred.

"I'm surprised," Asuma-sensei admitted. "I thought you kids would have been too young to remember the Uchiha Clan. Except for Sasuke, of course."

"It would be hard to forget," Ino said. "School was closed for three days all of a sudden, and there was that huge funeral for all of them. My daddy told me that someone had snuck into the village and slaughtered the entire Uchiha Clan. They didn't know who did it until later, though."

"Yeah, Sasuke-kun was the only one left," Chouji commented. "He was at kunai practice that night with us, remember?"

Shikamaru nodded. "But then he was out of school for almost a month, and when he came back, he had this attitude and wouldn't talk to anybody. What a pain. He didn't used to be weird before that."

"Well, just think about what he must have been through," said Asuma-sensei, "And I'll tell you now, just be careful if you do encounter Itachi and that other guy. Don't try to engage them on your own. Get out of there and report back to the village. I've fought these two before. You all have really improved, but those guys are on a whole other level."

To Be Continued


	5. Chapter 5

Love is BlondeBy Maria Szabo  
Chapter Five

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

"Count to ten," he chanted silently to himself. "Count to ten. Count to twenty. Count to fifty. Keep counting."

He'd learned that mantra as a child. The art of the shinobi was half concealment and the Earth Nation was sorely bereft of decent cover. So the shinobi of Iwagakure developed invisibility jutsu. They dug into the earth, they faded into the shadows of the rocks, disappeared into thin air. And they learned to wait, as he waited now, for as long as it need be.

"Deidara-sempai?" Tobi's voice sounded uncomfortable, out there alone in the pitch-black darkness. "I think they're gone now."

"Be quiet, you idiot! They may circle back, yeah!"

"I don't think so." The grass cracked open and he emerged, brushing the soil from himself.

At least, Deidara thought, he'd figured out how Tobi was hiding. He seemed to be using a variation of one of Zetsu's jutsu, although it didn't seem that he could imitate Zetsu's ability to transport himself from place to place. It made sense—Tobi had been Zetsu's subordinate before he'd finagled his way into Akatsuki. No doubt he picked up a trick or two during that time. Unfortunately, he hadn't quite got the knack of keeping dirt off of him.

"What's with all these extra patrols anyway, Deidara-sempai? It's almost as if they're looking for us."

"Or someone, yeah." He released the jutsu and came back into view. Tobi had a point. They'd had a number of close calls in the past several hours. Something was up, and he needed to find out what was going on. But first, he had to rest. It was well past midnight. He'd managed to successfully reattach his severed right arm, but his left one, which had been crushed in his battle with the Kazekage, still troubled him. He had more movement than before, but the wound was severe and he needed expert medical attention, the sort that an s-class criminal found hard to come by. The wound slowed him down and made him vulnerable. He didn't like that.

"Okay," he said. "We'll need to set up some sort of watch tonight, yeah. Do you want first or second?"

"I'll take the first watch, sempai. I'm not tired!"

Somehow he doubted that, but with Tobi, one could never tell. "Fine. Keep yourself hidden, yeah? In the grass or trees or whatever is easiest for you to maintain."

"What about you, Deidara-sempai?"

"I'll stay here, near the rocks." He was, after all, a shinobi of the Stone, even if he had forsaken his homeland a long time ago. "Wake me for the second shift, yeah?"

"Sure thing, sempai." Tobi saluted in mock precision. "Leave it to me!"

The sound of birdsong in the air woke him, fresh from a dream that mixed a sweet-smelling fair-haired nymphette and a series of gradually increasing explosions that sent the earth reeling. He raised his hand to his eyes to block out the light, and realizing with a shock that it was full morning, cursed fluently.

The minute I get my hands on that loser, he thought, he's dead. Very dead. Deader than dead. It would just be a question of slow and painful or quick and efficient. The Leader would surely understand. Kakuzu killed his partners all the time, except for Hidan, who for some reason just would not die.

It didn't take long to find him. Tobi had positioned himself atop a large oak, and was comfortably ensconced in the branches. From under his swirling red mask, the sound of snoring was clearly audible.

Deidara considered his sleeping partner for a moment, then with a wry smile, he reached inside his cloak and pulled out a bag. His good hand slipped in and he could feel his other tongue lapping up the soil. A "Number Three", that should do it. His hand opened and from his palm emerged a couple of abstract hornets. He threw them in the air, and once they were in close range, he posed his right hand in the familiar gesture.

"Release!" he spat, and a couple of small explosions blew off the top of the oak. Tobi went flying and with a resounding thud, landed ungracefully on the ground.

"What? What?" he rolled over and jumped to his feet, his fingers forming into a sign. He looked frantically around, but stopped suddenly when he realized that his partner was standing there glaring at him.

"Wakey, wakey, yeah."

"Deidara-sempai! I was just…um…just…"

"Sleeping on watch?"

"Oh, no, I wasn't sleeping! Far from it! I just wanted them to THINK that I was sleeping." Tobi scratched the spiky black hair on the back of his head. "Looks like it fooled you, didn't it? Pretty clever, huh?"

"Pretty stupid is more like it, yeah. Grab your gear, and fast. Someone must have heard that, yeah?"

"I thought the Leader didn't want us to attract attention, sempai…" he stopped when Deidara turned on him, his eyes fixed in the Glare of Death. "Gear. Right away. Yes."

As Tobi scrambled for his cloak, hat and bedroll, Deidara calmly pulled together his own belongings. There wasn't much. The members of Akatsuki usually traveled light. He gave himself a moment to enjoy a fleeting feeling of relaxation. It had been days since he had blown anything up, and he had been getting cranky.

"Okay, sempai, I'm ready."

So much for relaxation. "About damn time, yeah. Let's get out of here."

"YOU! Stop right there!"

A series of kunai flew at them, forcing them closer together. The voice was feminine and somewhat familiar, but he didn't take the time to identify it. He reached into his pouch and grabbed some clay. From the corner of his eye, he saw Tobi slip into a fighting stance.

"Identify yourselves!" The voice echoed among the leaves like the birdsong he'd heard earlier, making it difficult to pinpoint. But he recognized the bossy tone. It was that pretty kunoichi from the other day.

"Ino? Ino-san, is that you?" He turned in a slow circle, his eyes on the treetops. If it was her, he might be able to talk his way out of things again. If not, he could always claim that he was there to meet her. A girl with a body like that probably had lots of men wanting to meet her. "It's me, yeah."

"Dei-san?"

"Dei-san!" whispered Tobi.

"Shut up and go along," he hissed back, and turned his attention to the treetops. "It's me, yeah. And my teammate. I wanted to show him around. He was curious, yeah."

"Sempai, I've been here before…" Tobi protested.

"But you were busy and didn't get a chance to look around, yeah, I know."

There was a slight thunk as Ino leapt to the ground beside them, three kunai delicately balanced between the fingers of her right hand. He deliberately eased his stance and silently willed Tobi to do the same. If that idiot attacked…

"You guys shouldn't be out here! I thought they passed the word about the situation. Foreigners were supposed to stay in the village until we get this settled!"

"Ah, well, that, yeah…" He took off his hat, and scratched his head.

"You didn't hear about it, did you?"

"No."

She sighed and put her kunai away. "You're really lucky that it was me that found you then. At least I know who you are. What's with those robes?"

"It was chilly this morning, yeah."

Ino pursed her lips, giving them both an appraising look. "That's an interesting design."

He found himself strangely flattered that she noticed. "Thank you. I made the pattern myself."

"What are those supposed to be? Clouds? Rocks?"

"Rocks, yeah. Like the way the sun sets at home." He pulled on Tobi's robe to spread out the cloth. "At twilight, the sun hits the stones around the village like this. Makes them bright red."

"I see," she tilted her head to the side to consider the pattern, then gave his partner the once-over. "And who's this?"

"My teammate. You can call him Tobi." Because there's no way anyone would have ever heard of this moron. "Tobi, this is Ino, from the Leaf village."

His masked partner lifted a hand to his coned hat. "Pleased to meet you."

"Hi. Now I hate to rush you, but I'm going to need to escort you back. If someone else comes across you guys, they won't bother asking questions, they'll attack right away."

"Sure, yeah," Deidara agreed. "But can you explain what's going on?"

She narrowed her eyes, but then sighed. "Well, it's better if you know, I suppose. Have you ever heard of Uchiha Itachi?"

Of course he had. That was who they were waiting to meet. But like hell he could tell her that. Then again, Itachi had made quite the name for himself with that rampage of his, so feigning ignorance was probably not a good idea. "The one with the eye-jutsu? That killed his whole family, yeah?"

"That's the one. Very dangerous, s-class criminal. Evidently, he's been spotted and there are concerns that he's planning some kind of attack here. Look," she pulled out a folded piece of paper, and opened it, pointing to one of the pictures on the page. "That's him, the dark-haired one."

She was so serious about the matter. It was adorable. This was starting to become amusing. "Who's that blue guy who looks like a fish?"

"That's Kisame-san, sempai!" Tobi, who was taller than both of them, leaned over to get a better look at the pictures. "Terrible picture of him, though."

"You know him?" Ino almost shrieked.

Tobi nodded, much to his horror. "Sure. He's one bad-ass ninja, I'll tell you that."

She shied away from him, leaning closer to Deidara. For a second, he was distracted by the scent of flowers. He wondered briefly if the smell came from her skin or her hair.

"Don't mind that idiot." He muttered. "I think someone must have dropped him on his head when he was a child, yeah."

"No, no," Tobi insisted. "Someone dropped something ON my head when I was a child."

He rolled his eyes. "See what I mean?"

"I think I do." The look on her face was priceless. Obviously not one to hide her emotions, this girl. "Well, let's get going. I've still got patrol, so I need to get you two back to the village and get back to work."

"Sempai?" Tobi asked.

"C'mon. We can see that meadow some other time, yeah?" Their options were limited, and on the whole, going into the village made better sense. If the Leaf-nins were out in force looking for Itachi, they couldn't very well hide in the woods waiting for him. Odds were good they wouldn't be recognized, especially if they kept away from anyone from the Stone village. With that Chuunin exam going one, there would be enough visitors that they could easily fade into the background, and it would solve the problem of lodging and food. Meeting up with Itachi and Kisame might be troublesome, but they'd deal with that when the time came. "I'm sure there's lots to see in Kohonagakure itself, yeah?"

To be continued


	6. Chapter 6

Love is Blonde

By Maria Szabo  
Chapter Six

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

It was luck, Ino thought, with a touch of jubilance, that brought her back in contact with that mysterious Stone-nin. She was sure of it. The routes that her team was to patrol were completely random. Asuma-sensei had merely given a nod and then indicated with abbreviated hand motions which directions she and Chouji were to take. It had been a complete surprise when she had come upon two strangers, garbed as if for travel, wandering a few miles from the village. For a moment, she thought she might have even stumbled upon Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigake Kisame themselves. Dei-san was fortunate that he had recognized her voice and called out to her. Otherwise he and his very weird companion might well be dead.

He walked beside her now, in that strange black and red cloak and the hat that looked more like it had come from the Rain village than the Earth country. He seemed pleased to see her, but she wasn't sure about that. It was hard to tell with shinobi, unless you knew the person very well.

She, Dei and Tobi had taken a slow pace back towards Kohonagakure. Ino would have preferred to move faster, but Dei was obviously nursing a wound and Tobi had this strange habit of wandering off the path.

Come to think of it, Tobi was kind of strange anyway, she mused. He said the oddest things, and when he looked at her, it was almost as if he was looking through her. Although that could be the mask. Ino had never liked the fashion that some ninja had of wearing masks all the time. On a mission, it might be useful, but otherwise, it was like some pathetic attempt to get attention. Speaking of attention…

"Hey! Hey! Tobi-san! Wait! Don't go that way!" she ran ahead to intercept him.

The man looked down at her, obviously confused. He was quite tall, even taller than Dei, who wasn't a short man by any means. "It's the way back to the village, isn't it?"

"No, there's a washed out gorge that way. We need to follow this left path here."

"Washed-out? I wonder when that happened?" he muttered to himself, and then bounded down the trail she indicated.

Dei sighed. "Sorry. He gets turned around easily, yeah."

She jumped a little. How did he manage to catch up so quickly, wounded like that? He caught her surprise and answered it with a cheeky grin, half-shadowed by the large hat he wore.

"So, that guy," she gestured in the vague direction of Tobi, "Was he hurt somehow? Brain damage? He seems kind of…"

"I know. I can only hope that's a head injury, because otherwise it would mean that he was that stupid to begin with, yeah." His caustic tone made her choke down a laugh.

"How did you get stuck with him?"

He frowned. "My previous partner was killed, yeah." There was a touch of regret in his rumbling voice.

"Is that when you took your wound?"

"Wound? Oh. This, yeah." He reached into his cloak and shifted his left arm gingerly. "Nah, but I guess you could say it was during the same mission."

"Does it hurt much?"

"Yeah."

"At least you can say you got it from the Kazekage, eh, sempai?" Tobi had bounced back up the pathway, obviously impatient.

Dei gritted his teeth. "Tobiiiii…"

"Oh, sorry, sempai." He turned his head towards her. "Forget I said that, okay?"

The atmosphere had turned very odd. Both of the Stone-nins were watching her like they expected her to do something, but she couldn't figure out why they were concerned. It was well known that the peace between the various hidden villages was fragile at best, and the Earth Country shared a border with the Wind Country. Conflicts between the two were inevitable.

"Well, we all have our jobs to do, don't we?" She had to say something to ease the tension. "That's just part of being a ninja…"

"Absolutely!" Tobi nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah." Dei agreed. He seemed to relax a bit. "I'm glad you understand."

"You know," she said, "about that arm, you might want to go by our hospital if you have time. Our Hokage was originally a medic-nin, so we have some really good doctors."

"I'll keep that in mind, yeah."

"No, really. Gaara—the Kazekage, I mean, came here for his first Chuunin exam a few years ago. He wounded his opponent in the semi-finals so badly that we all thought that guy would have to give up being a shinobi. But the Hokage was able to heal him. If it was that same sand-crushing technique…"

Dei looked at her sideways. "You've seen it, yeah?"

"Huh? Yes, of course. I was there, but I drew someone else. I'm just grateful I didn't have to fight him. I can't believe the Sand village made him Kazekage. That guy is completely crazy."

"Came as a surprise to me, too." He shifted his arm again, obviously uncomfortable. "But I doubt your medics would be too keen on healing a shinobi from another village, yeah."

"Would you like me to take a look at it, then?"

"You're a medical ninja?"

She shrugged. "It's not my specialty, but I know enough to get by." Although she'd never match Sakura's level, she'd trained enough to get her certification, because she'd be damned if Sakura left her in the dust.

He was silent for a minute, as if thinking something over. Then he nodded. "If you have some time later, yeah. I wouldn't mind."

"Great! I guess we can meet up after I finish patrol tonight?" She tried to sound nonchalant, but a bit of excitement crept into her voice.

He seemed to pick up on it, since his one good eye seemed to spark a bit. "I think it can be arranged, yeah."

"Where do you want…"

"This was where…" Tobi, who had been walking a few paces in front of them, stopped suddenly. Ino nearly bumped into him.

"Where what?" Ino bristled. That man really was annoying.

"Where…where…shoot, I don't remember now."

Dei reached for something at his waist, but he stopped when he caught her eyes on him. A flash of something ran across his face, but it was gone before she could place the emotion.

Time to step in again and turn on the charm, she thought. Dealing with foreigners seemed to require a lot of tact. "It sounds like you've been here in the Fire Country before, Tobi-san?"

"Yes," He looked around him, "but it was a long time ago now. Everything seems different."

Dei leaned closer to her. The scent of smoke and dirt clung to him like perfume. "Iwagakure was once at war with your village, yeah? I think he's having flashbacks, yeah."

She let Tobi get several feet away from them before she replied. "He kinda creeps me out," she whispered.

The blonde man laughed. "Oh, don't worry about him. He's harmless. Mostly."

"He seems a bit…simple. Can he even fight?"

Dei shrugged. "Not as well as my last partner. That guy was a genius, yeah."

"Sounds like you miss him."

"Does it?" He closed his one eye and seemed to be lost in thought. "I suppose I do, come to think of it. He was pretty rigid in his thinking, but at least he understood the art of what we do, yeah."

"The art?"

"Yeah. Anyone can kill. Hell, even Tobi here could kill. But not everyone can do it in style."

"I haven't really thought of it that way before."

"That First Hokage of yours, the one who designed that meadow and your village, I think he probably understood how art and jutsu work together, yeah. It's not just being able to throw a kunai. Any idiot can learn to do that with enough practice. It's the inherent beauty in the act itself, yeah."

Ino wondered how her family's possession jutsu could possible be considered "artistic". It was like kunai-throwing. Pretty basic genjutsu, when it came down to things. "So, do you specialize in "artistic jutsu" like that, Dei-san?"

"Naturally, yeah." He opened his right hand and considered his palm. "I've got a bloodline inheritance, but I've tried to interpret it in a fresh way, yeah."

"What is that in your hand? I mean, if it's not rude to ask…"

He turned his palm towards her. Another mouth grinned at her from the center of his hand. She blinked. He laughed, a low rumble that sounded a bit like an earthquake.

"So, Ino-san, are you from an advanced bloodline?"

"Me? Not really. We have some specialized jutsu that has been passed down, but anyone with talent could learn them." She smiled, a little wistfully. "I can't claim that it's very artistic, either."

"But you could make it an art. My master, my old partner, I mean, he was like you. His jutsu wasn't unique, but his interpretation of it was, and that's what made him so outstanding."

There was something about that moment, she thought, that felt genuine. Dei and Tobi both seemed to be hiding something, but when he talked about art, the façade faded away. "Maybe I can try that. Incorporate it in my training."

"You'll find it helpful, yeah," he smiled down at her through the streamers on his hat. "I think it would be quite something to see you in battle, Ino-san."

She felt a blush creeping across her cheeks. Although she was no stranger to men calling her beautiful, it was a rare pleasure to be praised for her skills as a kunoichi. She was very fond of her teammates, but it always felt like she was playing catch-up. Shikamaru was smarter and Chouji was stronger, so she was always having to figure out how to compensate for that.

"The gate, I see the gate!" Tobi shouted from in front, and the moment was over. She needed to drop those two off and get back to work. Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigake Kisame were still out there. Who knew, maybe today would be the day she'd run into Akatsuki?

To Be Continued.


	7. Chapter 7

Love is Blonde  
By Maria Szabo  
Chapter Seven

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

"So what do you think?" Tobi asked as they made their way towards the center of the village.

Deidara took off his hat and turned in a circle, taking in the urban chaos surrounding him. So this was Kohonagakure, the Village Hidden in the Leaves. He'd heard of the place since he was old enough to remember, back in the days when all the great nations were at war. And now here he was, in the heart of the land of his enemy.

"It's not quite what I expected," he admitted.

Kohonagakure was an odd place, buildings crowded up against one another like too many people trying to share a single umbrella. At one time, he supposed, it must have been quite the design, like a stand of trees in the shadow of the great bluff that overlooked the village, but ravages of time and modern construction had ruined the pristine structures, making them look a bit shabby.

Wouldn't it be interesting, he thought, to bomb the whole place and then see what they came up with next? But that wasn't what Akatsuki had sent him here for, more's the pity. And he wasn't sure if Itachi would take kindly to him wiping out his old stomping grounds. From their brief conversations in the past, it didn't seem that Itachi had much of an issue with his homeland. His problem chiefly seemed to stem from his family.

Now, Orochimaru…there was a man with a grudge. It had been years since Deidara had set eyes on the man, but he still recalled the cold hatred that would seep from Orochimaru's voice when the subject of his home village was brought up. He really detested the place, and by extension, everyone in it. However, Orochimaru had been enthralled with concept of immortality and obtaining new jutsu, and his hatred for the Fire Nation usually took a back seat to obsession.

He was surprised with how easily they managed to get through the gate. Ino had simply waved at the guard and they were in. No one said anything about papers. Security was remarkably lax—it would have never happened in Iwagakure. And this was the vaunted Kohonagakure, famed as the strongest of the hidden villages? It struck him as kind of ironic, and perhaps reemphasized the point that the Leader had brought up upon occasion: the shinobi world was in dire need of change, and Akatsuki would be the ones to put that change into motion. It was that concept of radical transformation that attracted him to the organization in the first place.

Tobi, a few feet in front of him, lifted his hand to balance his hat on his head as he looked up in awe at the huge faces engraved upon the bluff above the village. "Five of them," he muttered.

"I heard they were on their fifth Hokage, yeah. So what?"

"Nothing." Tobi removed his hat finally to get a better look, although it was hard to believe that that guy could see anything clearly through that mask of his. "He looks so different up there. So…stern."

"Who?" Now he was really confused. Tobi had been acting strangely ever since they set foot in the Fire Country. He'd mentioned having been there before, but Deidara had never pressed him for the details. Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure where the hell Tobi came from originally. He wore no hitai-ate, but since Zetsu had shown up with him, everyone had assumed he had also been a Grass-nin. The majority of Akatsuki hailed from the minor villages, after all.

"Nevermind," Tobi placed his hat back on his head and turned back towards him. "So, sempai, what are we going to do now?"

Deidara thought for a moment. Considering the last information they had on Itachi and Kisame's whereabouts, it would be at least two days before they were close enough to rendezvous, and that was if they were lucky and didn't run into any trouble on the way. The Leaf village had been warned of their approach, but Itachi had grown up in Kohonagakure and knew the lands around the village extremely well, and Kisame was, if nothing else, one hell of a fighter, so Deidara figured they'd make it through. His own challenge would be to hide in plain sight within the village, and to keep Tobi out of trouble until they could get Kisame's maps and codes and leave for the Water Country. Two or three days of waiting shouldn't be too difficult.

But then again, this was Tobi he was dealing with here.

"Well, we're here, so we might as well take advantage of the situation, yeah," he pulled his partner over to the side of the street so they wouldn't be quite so visible. "First, we find a place to stay. Second, a bath, and maybe do something about these clothes, yeah. Third, find something to eat besides these craptastic trail rations."

"You don't like my cooking, sempai?" Tobi sounded halfway between hurt and sarcastic.

Deidara favored him with the Glare of Death. "You seem to know this place better than I do, yeah. Where do you suggest we stay?"

Despite Tobi's assurances that he'd find a good place right away, it took some time to secure a good location. A number of the inns were full—a silent tribute to the size and status of the latest chuunin exam, the largest in several years. Deidara also needed to be sure there were no ninjas from his home village staying there. He'd been gone a long time, but not so long that he wouldn't be recognized by the people he'd grown up with. There was no point worrying about Tobi, as he wore no indicator of his original alliance, and as he said in a tone of complete indifference, "No one will recognize me. I'm wearing a mask!"

"Like that means anything, hmm? Any ninja worth his headband would hardly be fooled by just a mask, yeah." The art of ninjutsu was, after all, based upon the principles of seeing beyond the obvious. Or oblivious, in Tobi's case.

"No, no, you don't get it, sempai. People notice the mask. They don't notice me at all!" As he spoke, he blundered into a street vendor's vegetable stand, knocking the produce all over the street.

"Oh, you're the very image of subtlety, yeah." He grabbed the taller man's arm and they both took off running, leaving the irate vendor far behind them.

They finally settled upon a small ryokan near the northern edge of the village. It was far enough away from the exam sites that it still had vacancies, and it was conveniently close to one of the gates that led out of the village, should things turn sour and necessitate a swift retreat.

"Welcome!" the Innkeeper, a woman of generous proportions, greeted them upon their entry.

He removed his hat and bowed politely. "We'd like a room, if that's possible, yeah."

"Reservations?"

"No, I'm sorry. Our trip was kind of last minute, yeah."

"Bad timing, I'm afraid, with the exams and all, but I think we can fit you in. How many?"

"One room. Two occupants."

Tobi sidled up to him. "Sempai, can't I have my own room?"

"No," he whispered back. "Kakuzu's going to be on my ass for staying here in the first place, yeah." Cheapskate, he thought. That grim asshole was always going on and on about money. Only Hidan could tolerate the guy, and that was only because he was so wrapped up in that weird religion of his that nothing else made much of an impact.

"Oh, c'mon!"

"No means no, hmm? So shut it."

The fat Innkeeper rolled her eyes and gave him a sympathetic smile. "I've got a fairly large room available, if you'd like."

"That will be fine, yeah."

It was better to err on the side of caution. There was no telling what mischief Tobi might get into if left to his own devices. He briefly amused himself with the image of his inept partner surrounded by a bevy of scantily-clad kunoichi and snorted. Like that would happen. This was Tobi he was dealing with here, not Kisame.

The room itself was spare and neat, with a folding screen, a small low-lying table and a few seating cushions as its only adornment. It was on the second floor, and there was a sliding door leading to a small balcony with an indifferent view. The were a couple of futons and pillows stashed in the closet, and he thought with relief how nice it would be to sleep on a bed again, even if it was only for a few days.

"I call the place by the windows, sempai!" Tobi declared, opening the sliding door to gaze out onto the balcony.

"I wanted to sleep by the window, yeah."

"I don't like feeling closed in." Tobi removed his hat and was in the process of taking off his cloak, throwing both of them carelessly on the floor.

"And how the hell and I supposed to be inspired by looking at some crappy wallscreen, hmm?" He gestured vaguely at the offending painting.

"Oh, c'mon, sempai. Besides, it'll be warmer next to the wall."

"I like it cold." Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Deidara could swear Tobi was grinning under that mask of his.

"I'll tell the Leader about that pretty new girlfriend of yours…"

"What girlfriend?"

"I-no-cha-n," Tobi laughed and made what sounded like some kissing-sounds.

"Oh, shut up. I was just playing her so we wouldn't get caught, yeah."

"Suuuuuure you were, sempai. I saw the way you were looking at her."

"Whatever." If he didn't give in, he'd have to listen to that idiot natter on about the girl for hours, and he had better things to do with his time. Besides, the Leader had his own squeeze, so it wasn't like he cared about what they did in their free time. All they had to do was show up when ordered.

Shedding his hat and cloak, he deposited his baggage on the floor and carefully set the boxes with his explosive clays on the table. "Where the yukata, hmm? I want to get washed up before dinner, yeah."

"Are we going to the bathhouse now, sempai?" his partner sounded a bit too excited for his tastes. He hadn't picked up that kind of vibe from him, but Tobi was weird, so one never knew what to expect.

"I am going to the bathhouse, yeah." He snatched the yukata from Tobi's hands and retreated behind the folding screen. "You can make yourself useful. The innkeeper said she had a laundry room down the hall, yeah."

"Aw, why me?" Tobi groused, but the shirt, undershirt and pants disappeared from the top of the screen. "Sempai!! Is that a loincloth you're wearing?"

"You bastard, quit peeking, yeah!" He turned towards the wall and whipped on his yukata. Idiot. How dare he comment on his loincloth. They were all the rage lately. Sasori-danna had worn one. Tobi probably still cavorted around in tighty-whities.

Once he heard his partner's heavy tread leave the room, Deidara managed a quick escape to the bathhouse, which was only a few blocks from the inn. The Fire Country was famous for its hot springs, and Kohonagakure had several of note within the confines of the village itself. He might as well enjoy some R&R while they were waiting. The hot water also might ease some of the pain in his left arm. He'd fashioned a small sling to keep it from moving too much, but the wound still troubled him. Maybe the famous mineral waters could help. If nothing else, a good long soak would take his mind off of the mission for awhile. That, and the cute, bossy little blonde thing who kept appearing, unbidden, in his imagination, with that exquisite figure and those ripe, rosy lips.

He frowned. Usually, if he became distracted, thinking about explosions calmed him down considerably. But not this time. It seemed to be making things worse. Damn the girl, anyway. No way could she really be that pretty. It was probably genjutsu, yeah.

The bathhouse was nothing extraordinary, a building set up on very traditional lines. It didn't look busy, which suited his mood perfectly. He paid the entrance fee, grabbed a towel and headed for the men's section.

"Hey. Hey, sister!" An attendant waved him down. "Wrong way. You need to go to the right."

He didn't even bother to turn around. "I'm a man, yeah," he rumbled in his lowest pitch.

"Sorry, so sorry. It's the hair."

"Don't worry about it. I get that all the time, yeah."

Actually, he'd deliberately cultivated his almost feminine facade, at first because it drove his father crazy, but later because he found that his appearance caused a split-second hesitation in some of his more chivalrous opponents. Not much time, but enough for him to get an advantage. His looks weren't quite as effective as they had been when he was a boy, but they still came in handy every now and then.

He smiled to himself wryly as he settled down on the bench to wash the dirt off before he entered the bath. Sasori-danna used to make the most cutting comments about his hair and feminine features. But then again, the puppet-master had been from Sunagakure, and the Sand-nin were not renowned for their progressive attitudes towards women. Or anything else for that matter, which was one of the reasons Sasori-danna had said that he left. Not enough room to grow, he claimed. Deidara understood that perfectly.

He stopped scrubbing. It suddenly occurred to him that he missed his old partner dreadfully. Sure, Sasori-danna was old and a conservative fuddy-duddy who had antiquated views on what constituted true artistic expression, but the man wasn't stupid. In spite of his odd ways, Sasori-danna had challenged him, pushing him farther than he ever realized he could go, and made him a better ninja. That was something he could never find back home. In Iwagakure, he'd been the prodigy, the genius, the golden child. It was all too easy, and it wasn't what he wanted.

There were a few other men soaking in the bath when he got in, but none of them had the look of shinobi. He slipped into the hot water, grateful for the warmth and the unspoken rule that kept them all in silence.

He was in a much better mood as he left the bathhouse, balancing the wash bucket in the sling holding his left arm, his long hair damp and hanging down his back. Returning to the room at the inn, he found Tobi absent, although since bits of his pauldrons were scattered about the floor and the other yukata was missing, he assumed that his partner had gone out to seek his own bath. Without having brought back the laundry, of course. Moron.

A search down a flight of stairs and along a hallway revealed the laundry-room that the innkeeper had spoken of. It seemed as though another patron had grown impatient with waiting for the washer, because his and Tobi's soggy garments were left in a bundle on the folding table.

He briefly thought of sprinkling a judicious amount of explosive clay upon the culprit's clothing so that an interesting bang might result when the heat of the dryer hit the wet clothing, but sadly, the Leader's strictures to remain anonymous were still ringing in his ears. The dryer also seemed to be in use, so he retreated back to the room to hang the wet clothing from the balcony. It wouldn't be the first time he had to hang laundry—Sasori-danna had always made him do their wash, since the fallout from his explosions inevitably deposited a lot of dust on their clothes. A little dirt didn't bother him too much, but Sasori-danna had been remarkably fastidious. Dust apparently caused problems with the joints on his puppets.

The simple task was more difficult than he imagined. His wounded arm was somewhat mobile, but painful. Once again, his mind drifted back to the pretty kunoichi who had managed to get them into the village. Ino had mentioned that she knew some medical jutsu, but they were interrupted in their conversation and he'd not managed to set a time to meet with her again.

Pity. It would have been a good chance to have his arm seen to, and to talk to her again. There was a vibrancy about her that attracted him. And an innocence that he almost felt badly for exploiting. Almost.

As Tobi had still not returned by the time he finished hanging the clothes, he decided to head back outside and find a place to eat. He supposed it would be too much to hope for that the moron had managed to drown himself. Ah, well, a man could dream. After they had checked in, the innkeeper recommended a number of reasonably-priced restaurants nearby. This was evidently more of a residential district, so the eateries tended not to charge tourist prices. She had obligingly drawn out a simple map of her favorites. One of the places she had marked was fairly close, and supposedly made some excellent yakitori chicken.

After a few blocks, he was grateful for the Innkeeper's map. These streets were like rabbit warrens, he thought. The amount and variety of wood used for the roofs and some of the building exteriors made it seem darker than it really was. They obviously had some modern conveniences, as evidenced by the telephone and electric wires that twined their way between the buildings, but on the whole, the overall impression was rather primitive.

He turned another corner and checked his map for the landmark the Innkeeper had indicated. The restaurant should be halfway up this street. If he got to the Yamanaka Flower Shop, he would have gone too far.

A flower shop in a ninja village? Orochimaru was right, these people really were spoiled. Although flowers put him in mind of Her, again. That scent of roses or lilies or whatever it was haunted him. On a whim, he passed his destination, and made his way a few doors down where a simply-painted sign indicated Flowers: Yamanaka.

It was closed. But in the window, a brilliant bouquet stood like a queen in its court, surrounded by a smattering of multi-colored petals. Somehow, it resembled a fountain of fire. So strange, he thought. Fire woven from blooms and vines…

"Dei-san? Is that you?"

He slowly turned around. Unbelievable. As if from the mists of his imagination, Ino stood before him, several wrapped bundles of flowers in her arms.

To be Continued


	8. Chapter 8

Love is Blonde  
By Maria Szabo  
Chapter Eight

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

Ino was not having the best of days. She'd woken up with bad hair which almost made her late for patrol, she had to sit behind Chouji's dad during the morning briefing and didn't get to see anything properly, and to make matters worse, she ran into a party of shinobi from Amegakure during the course of the day. They were enraged that all their candidates had failed so early in the exam, and were looking to take out their frustration on anyone who crossed their path.

Alas, that person was her. The result was fast, furious and fatal. And unfortunate, because then she was read the riot act by the Hokage when the team got back. It wasn't fair. If anyone else (like Sakura) had been in the same situation, no one would have said a thing about it. Ino didn't enjoy killing people, but she had been trained for it, and thought she knew that some ninja got off on the death angle, she wasn't that way herself. The lecture, she thought, was completely unnecessary.

When she was halfway home, she remembered that she was supposed to pick up a shipment of goods for the shop that were being held at the customs station near the south gate. Then it turned out that some of the paperwork was out of order and she had to wait for more than an hour before they'd release the shipment to her.

So she was not in the best of moods when she approached her family shop's doorstep, her arms full of the fresh-cut flowers that her father had ordered from the Water County, and saw what looked to be some loiterer hanging around outside the display window. Great, she thought, another problem to deal with.

But as she got closer, she found the stranger somewhat familiar.

"Dei-san? Is that you?"

He turned, surprise evident on his face. The Stone-nin had changed out of his field outfit into a yukata, the kind offered by the local inns. His hair was no longer tied up in a high ponytail, but hung damply across his shoulders, although it was still parted so the left side covered the mechanical apparatus that served for his left eye.

"Ino-san? What are you doing here, hmm?"

She had to smile at that. "I live here. Above the shop. My family owns it."

He shook his head, and she thought she heard him mutter "What are the odds?" but she couldn't be sure. Blushing a bit, she shifted her bundles to one hand and unlocked the door with the other.

"Would you like to come in?"

"Sure," Dei proceeded her into the shop and looked about curiously. "I was wondering what a flower shop was doing in a ninja village, yeah."

She laughed at his tone. "We do the same thing a flower shop does anywhere else. Weddings, funerals, special occasions…why? Don't they have one in Iwagakure?"

He shrugged. "No. Not that we don't have weddings, funerals and special occasions, yeah. But flowers are rare."

"How strange. I couldn't imagine…" she laid her bundles down on a narrow counter. "Oh, wait, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend."

"I don't care. So your family runs this place, hmm?"

"My father and his brother. We all work here when we're not on missions. Usually it's my mom or my uncle minding the shop."

"And your father?"

"He's a jounin, so he's not home much. Mother went on reserve when I was born, but she's been called up since Orochimaru attacked."

"I heard Kohonagakure took quite a beating, yeah."

"It was awful." She shivered. She'd been watching the Chuunin exams with everyone else and then the world faded into a blur. Asuma-sensei had lifted the illusion from her and sent her out with the others into the streets to fight while he took off after Shikamaru, who'd been sent off on some errand. It was Snakes, Sound and Sand nin everywhere she turned. And always in view was that horrible square atop the coliseum, where the Third Hokage was battling for their lives against Orochimaru himself, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it. But that was three years ago, and she wasn't a child anymore. "I guess you can see we fixed things up."

"Fast work, yeah."

"My uncle is the one who really runs things. He's retired now." She hoped he couldn't hear the catch in her voice.

He could. "Wounded, hmm?"

"Yeah, pretty badly. It happened when I was a kid. He doesn't get around very easily, and his burns haven't healed well, so my mom and I usually work in front."

"The life of a shinobi…hmm?"

She nodded. "Exactly. Do you want to look around for a minute? I need to put these in some water before they wilt."

Ino ran into the back room. No, her uncle wasn't there. He must have gone to get some dinner and gotten pulled into a shogi game. He was one of the village's better players.

It didn't take long to see to the flowers, and she came back to the front to catch Dei admiring some of the arrangements.

"Did your uncle do these? Remarkable, yeah."

"Most of them. He's good, isn't he?"

"Very. There's a real sense of balance and movement here. And I like the color play in this one." He walked back towards the window. "But this one here is my favorite. It's extraordinary. It almost looks like a fountain of fire."

"That's the effect I was going for."

"You did this?"

She looked away, trying not to blush. "It's not much."

"Not much? How can you say that, hmm? It's ART, Ino-san! And alive…"

She looked her creation over critically. "Alive for now. Even with me seeing to it, I wouldn't give it three more days at most. These things don't last."

"No," he agreed. The look on his face was very odd. It almost seemed like he was happy about the fact.

"So are you staying nearby, Dei-san?" she indicated his yukata.

He ducked his head and rubbed the back of it deprecatingly. "Hmm. A few blocks over, yeah. I was actually looking for the Yoshikawa restaurant when I saw your shop."

"Oh, that's just a few doors down."

"Have you eaten yet, Ino-san?"

"No, not yet." Surely he wasn't going to ask her out. Was he?

"Would you like to join me, hmm? It's no fun to eat alone, yeah."

She felt an inexplicable bolt of joy. "Give me a minute to change! I'll be right down!"

"Go right ahead, yeah."

"But wait, that reminds me, we need to take a look at your arm. Do you want to do that now, or after we eat?"

"Now would be good, yeah. Better on an empty stomach, hmm?" he had an ironic smile, one that didn't always reach his eyes. It made him hard to read.

It was worth the few extra minutes, Ino thought triumphantly, as she made her was back downstairs. It was a toss-up between wearing the cute-and-innocent outfit or the sexy kunoichi garb. She finally compromised, covering a bit more than she would if she was really trying to impress somebody, but less than the clothes her father preferred her to wear. Dei blinked a couple of times, then stared.

Perfect.

At least until he gave her a slow smile which told her he knew exactly what she had been doing.

Time to change the mood. She set down the medkit that she brought from upstairs and pulled out a small container of salve. "We should get started on this, then. The left arm?"

He nodded, then winced as she touched it. She pulled a bit at the yukata.

"It might be better if I saw it," she muttered. "Can you shrug out of this?"

"Do you want it completely off?"

She flashed her eyes at him. "Dei-san! This isn't the time."

He laughed at her, then pulled the shoulder of the yukata down with his right hand, gingerly lifting his left arm from the sleeve.

"Thank you. Now let's see…" she lifted his arm and noticed some rough stitches that seemed to knit the skin near his shoulder. "That's weird. Was this…reattached?"

"Kinda, yeah." He muttered.

"No wonder it hurts." Ino let the arm go and opened the container, dipping her fingers into the lotion and smoothing it onto his arm. "That's not a part of your jutsu, is it?"

"Not mine." He bit down on the words crisply.

She didn't blame him. This was a good salve, but it stung like the devil. Closing her eyes and concentrating, she felt the chakra gathering in her palms, increasing to a soft burn. Learning medical jutsu had not been so different from learning the genjutsu her family specialized in, but it was a tricky art. Surprisingly, when the entire team had gone through the beginning lessons, she'd picked it up faster than even Shikamaru. Shizune, who had been teaching them, said that wasn't unusual. Women for some reason had more of an inclination for the medical arts. Ino rather resented that, since she wanted to fight just as much as her male counterparts, but it was just as well. Her specialty jutsu kept her in the shadows anyway, and the Fifth Hokage was always saying that a medical ninja's most important task was to stay alive. Who better, then, to be the team's medical backup than the one who needs to operate in secret?

Her hands almost felt on fire when she laid them on Dei's cold arm. He hissed in reaction, but stayed remarkably still. He evidently had a lot of discipline. Underneath her fingers, she could feel his muscles tense as she soothed the tears and knitted the bones. She kept herself grounded, and let the healing flow through her.

When she looked up, he was staring at her again. A red light glinted from behind the curtain of blond hair that sheltered his left eye.

"You…" he whispered

"What?"

Dei seemed to catch himself then. "I…no, nothing, yeah. My arm feels better, yeah." He flexed it experimentally.

"Slowly! You're still going to need to take it easy for a bit. Is it sore?"

"Some, yeah. But not hurting like it was before, yeah."

"I did the best I could, but Dei-san, I'm just a medic. You really should see a doctor. There's something off with the chakra in your arm, and I'm not experienced enough…"

"No, no doctor. I can manage." He pulled his arm away and started to slip the yukata back over his shoulder.

"You really should go."

"No, you did fine, yeah. Much better than that hack job Kakuzu did."

"Who?"

"Guy on my team, yeah. You wouldn't like him, trust me. I don't."

Ino saw that he was trying to change the subject, but this was too important to let go. "I still think you should see a doctor. The hospital isn't that far, and they really don't mind seeing foreigners…"

He seemed a bit close all of a sudden. She stepped back a bit. He followed her.

"Dei-san?"

"I should probably thank you, hmm?" He lifted her chin with his fingers, briefly brushing along her throat.

"That's not ne…"

His lips covered hers before she could say anything more. She felt his right arm wrap about her waist and pull her against him, while his left slipped into her hair. He smelled cleanly of soap, but there was still that scent of earthiness about him. She struggled a bit, but he merely pulled her closer, and teased her with his mouth. Ino had been kissed before, but never like this. She almost felt like she was losing herself.

Focus, she thought. Dei was strong, but she was no weakling. She let him keep kissing her while she slid her arms around his neck. He sighed in approval and pressed closer. For a moment, she felt overwhelmed by it all, the taste of his lips, the warmth of his skin and the feel of his body next to hers, but then her training kicked back in. Slowly, she positioned her hands firmly against his chest and then pushed. Hard.

Dei fell back against the wall, panting slightly, his bright hair mussed. "Ino-san?"

She took a minute to catch her own breath, then favored him with a glare. "That's not the thanks I wanted, Dei-san."

"Really?" he chuckled. "And here I thought I was being nice."

"No, thank you."

He ran a finger slowly down her arm. "There's nothing wrong with it."

"I don't want to."

"I could make you…"

"WHAT?"

"Want to, yeah." He tilted his head and gave her an inviting grin. "If you like, hmm?"

"How would you like to have that newly-healed arm broken, HMM?"

He held up his hands in surrender. "Point taken, Ino-san."

"Apology?"

"I'm not sorry, yeah. Are you, hmm?"

She tried to hold on to her anger, but his expression was so mischievous that she found herself laughing instead. "You pay for dinner."

"Whatever you say, yeah." He offered her his right hand. "Shall we?"

"Of course," she accepted it and led him towards the door. "But let's skip the Yoshikawa place. They're awful. I'll take you to somewhere better." Somewhere, she thought, whose owner wouldn't tell her father about her bringing in a young man.

"As long as it's not too far." He indicated his clothes. "I'm not exactly dressed for it, hmm?"

"You'll be fine, I promise." She pulled on his hand and led him out into the evening. Maybe this day wasn't so bad after all.

To Be Continued

Author's note: Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to comment! I very much appreciate your thoughts and encouragement. Sorry this chapter took so long. I've got the next three plotted out, so hopefully there won't be as long as a wait! PS: Would love to see more Deidara/Ino out there! Because there's nothing like a crack pairing:-)


	9. Chapter 9

Love is Blonde  
By Maria Szabo  
Chapter Nine

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

Her fingers seemed small in his hand as she led him throught the streets of Kohonagakure. Ino's hair, paler than his by a few shades, glistened in the lantern-light. Her clothing, a semi-tight confection of black and blue, were difficult to distinguish in the twilight, but she wore a few light-colored accessories that emphasized some of that delightful figure that he had held so close just a short while before.

Deidara felt a rush of excitement. Dinner had been a blur. No doubt the food had been satisfactory, but it made no impression on him. His memory kept the taste of her in his mouths, sweet and salty and damn, he was being stupid. What was he doing, traipsing into the very heart of the Leaf village on the arm of a girl he barely knew? It was unnecessary and idiotic and put the mission in danger. Sasori-danna would never have been led astray like this, surely. But then again, Sasori-danna had been a bit strange with that puppet-fetish of his.

What did it matter, he thought. How long had it been since he'd let himself go like this? He couldn't remember. Life since he joined Akatsuki had been rewarding, both financially and artistically, but the work seemed to never end. Was it so wrong to forget the never-ending mission for an evening and simply spend time with a pretty girl?

He had been perfectly satisfied with the way things were going until the minute he'd pulled Ino into his arms. He'd only meant to rattle the girl, to get her to shut up about his wound, but the moment his mouth found hers, something had snapped. Suddenly, all he could think of was Ino, her taste, the warmth of her skin, the softness of her body against his, and that heady scent of mixed blossoms that clung to her. It made him disoriented, drunk, dizzy…as intoxicating as an explosion.

She looked up at him, smiling, completely innocent of the effect she was having on him. "Did you like it?"

"Eh?"

"The food. How was it?"

Her lips were so red. Was that natural? He hadn't seen her put any lipstick on after they'd eaten. "The food, yeah. Delicious." And now, he just needed dessert.

"That's good. What was your favorite?"

Damn, he couldn't remember what they'd eaten. "Ah, Ino-san. What's with all these lanterns? I've seen them all over, yeah."

"Oh." She looked up at the array above them, one of many that lined the street. "It's for the Chuunin exam's final rounds. So many people come to the village to see them, it's almost like a festival. It used to be that there was a delay between the end of the second round and the third, but after what happened three years ago, the new Hokage decided to change the timeline a bit and run the exams consecutively."

"Gives us foreigners less time to spy out your secrets, hmm?"

"I didn't say that, Dei-san."

"You didn't have to, yeah." He liked that about Ino. She always held something back. She made him chase her. It didn't seem intentional, he thought, but something natural to her character, like her bossiness and beauty.

"Well," she replied, "If you're really spying, at least now you know where the best restaurant is. Do you want me to show you the best view, too?"

"Of course. That way, when Iwagakure invades, I'll know where to go to savor our conquest, yeah."

She released his hand and hit him, lightly. "Like that'll happen."

He used her movement as an excuse to slip his arm around her waist. "You never know, Ino-san, hmm?"

It seemed like she blushed a bit, but in the lantern-light, it was hard to tell. She didn't move his hand, though. He let it settle on the curve of her hip. It was, he thought, going to be a perfect evening.

"Sempai!" a cheery voice rang out, "I was wondering where you'd gone!"

Maybe not so perfect.

"Tobiii…"

"And look, it's Ino-chan! Hi, Ino-chan!"

She sighed. "Hello, Tobi-san."

"I just finished eating and I saw you two walking down the street. This is great!" He was fully dressed, up to and including that body armor he was so fond of. At least he'd had the sense to leave the cloak back at the inn. Even if Ino hadn't recognized the Akatsuki design, Deidara was sure there were some Leaf-nin around who would, if given the chance. "How'd you find her, huh, sempai?"

"I ran into Ino-san on my way to dinner, yeah," he muttered.

"Suuure you did, sempai."

He felt Ino's hand come down on the one he had wrapped around her, which had somehow managed to make itself into a fist. "Are you lost, Tobi-san?"

"Not really. I went by the place of a guy I used to know, but he wasn't there. Must be on a mission or something."

"Really? Who were you looking for?"

"Hatake Kakashi, the copy ninja. Do you know him?"

"Kakashi-sensei? He's in the hospital right now."

"He was hurt?" Tobi almost sounded happy.

"Exhaustion, is what I heard." She shrugged. "Kakashi-sensei gets sent on a lot of missions."

Deidara froze. He remembered Hatake Kakashi. The copy-ninja was one of the Leaf-nin who could recognize him. This could only end in tears.

"You said sensei." Tobi drew closer to her. "Was he your teacher?"

"Oh, no. My team studied with Asuma-sensei."

"Asuma? Of the Sarutobi clan?"

"That's him."

"He came back?" Tobi scratched his head. "I'll be damned."

Ino's face grew guarded. "How do you know about that?"

Deidara kicked him and smiled down at the girl. "Our spies are really thorough, yeah," he lied. "Our Tobi here is quite the professional, don't you think, hmm?"

"Thank you, Sempai!"

He pulled Ino closer and whispered into her ear, "Don't worry about it. That moron can't spy his way out of a paper bag, yeah. He came here himself for his Chuunin exams, back in the day."

"Back in the day?" She stared at Tobi suspiciously. "But he calls you sempai and you can't be more than a couple of years older than me, so how is it he knows Kakashi-sensei? And Asuma-sensei came back to the village when I was a kid."

"Don't try to make sense of it all, Ino-chan," Tobi said comfortingly. "Whenever I try to think about it, it confuses me, too."

Damn Tobi anyway, he thought. Now the girl had drawn away, out of his arms.

"I think," she said, "that I've made a mistake. Maybe we'd better get you guys back to your Inn."

"Too late for that, I-no-cha-n."

"Will you quit it, hmm? We didn't come here to fight, yeah."

"YOU didn't, Sempai."

"Son of a…" he turned to face the girl, who had backed up against a nearby wall. Her hands flickered and then she formed a square with the thumb and forefinger of each hand. "Ino-san, I promise…"

"Shin-ten-shin no jutsu," she whispered, and then fell to the ground in a faint.

They both stood there and stared at the girl for a moment.

"What the hell was that, hmm?"

"What?" Tobi replied. He seemed a bit disoriented.

"Look at her. Did you do something, hmm?"

His partner chuckled. "Not a thing, sempai."

"Yeah, right. With that stupid funky jutsu of yours, yeah. Dammit!" Deidara knelt and put two forefingers against the girl's neck. Her pulse was strong. "What are we supposed to do now, hmm?"

"Leave her?"

"No."

"Why not?"

Because she was pretty. Because she understood him. Because she might get hurt lying here in some alleyway. Because she was the closest he'd gotten to being laid in a very, very long time. "Because I said so, that's why! Yeah."

Tobi stood still for a moment, his fingers tapping against his masked chin. "Wait, sempai. I have an idea. Pick her up and follow me."

TO BE CONTINUED


	10. Chapter 10

Love is Blonde

By Maria Szabo

Chapter Ten

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

Something was up. Something was up and she was in big trouble. Something was up and Yamanaka Ino was going to have to use all her wits to get out of this one. It was her own fault, she admitted to herself ruefully. She'd been distracted by her attraction to Dei-san and had forgotten that these two strangers, friendly though they seemed, were still shinobi from another country and potential enemies.

Possessing Tobi had been easy but staying in his mind was proving to be a real trial. He was strong. Physically strong, mentally strong, and a lot stronger than he looked. His mind roiled under the blanket of her jutsu. There was amusement, at first, and then a frightening burst of power, but he couldn't quite throw her out. She had Sakura to thank for that, she supposed. Ino had swallowed her pride after the first Chuunin exam and had asked Sakura to train with her, because she'd never heard of anyone breaking the Shintenshin no jutsu before. Her father had said that it had only happened to him a couple of times, and always, it seemed, with people he knew quite well. Tobi's mind was bursting with anger, but Ino was able to hold onto it, if barely.

It took a few minutes to get used to the long stride of his larger form and it seemed that he had some sort of eye jutsu, for his vision was one of the oddest things she'd ever experienced. She wondered briefly exactly what exactly his power was. On a weaker subject, she might be able to delve a bit into his memories and see what information she could extract, but with Tobi, it was all she could do to maintain control of his body.

Don't panic, she told herself. Just get yourself out of danger and then report these two. She might not be able to handle them by herself, but there was no way these guys could stand up to a team of Leaf ninja.

"So where are we going, hmm?" Dei's voice broke her train of thought. He was trailing behind Tobi, sticking to the shadows. The red light of his mechanical eye glimmered through the curtain of his hair.

She felt the blood rush to her face when she saw her body cradled in his arms. Thank the gods, she thought, that Tobi likes to wear a mask. It would have been more practical for him to sling her over his shoulder, but instead, he nestled her gently against his chest. "The hospital," she replied.

"Are you insane?" Dei stopped and shifted her to a more comfortable position. "You idiot! She might not have recognized us, yeah, but don't you think someone else will?"

What's this? She thought. "But it's just a hospital…"

"Yeah, and who do you think gets the most injuries? The jounin. You may feel all safe with that mask and all, but you can damn sure bet I'm going to be recognized. Didn't she say Kakashi was there?"

At Kakashi's name, Tobi's mind went into high turmoil. Ino concentrated hard to keep from being thrown out. "Sempai…"

"Shut up. Just shut up." A frown creased Dei's handsome face. "It's Kakashi you're after, isn't it, hmm? You were asking plenty about him earlier. I don't know what kind of grudge you have against him, but it's gonna have to wait. Let's get back to the hotel. We can't stand in the street arguing about this all day, yeah."

"But the girl?" She had to get away. Even if they just dumped her in the street, she could release Tobi and then get some help.

"She comes with us, yeah," Dei smiled down at her unconscious form. "If anyone asks any questions, she just had too much to drink."

Ino cringed inwardly when she saw where they were going. The Five Frogs Ryokan was not one of the more reputable inns in town. Then again, the good ones were filled up with all the people who came into town for the Chounin Exams.

The rather sleepy-looking old man who was sitting at the front desk suddenly perked up with interest as they came in. She recognized him as one of her uncle's shogi buddies. Surely he'd recognize her…

"What's this, then?" his eyes slid suggestively over Ino's sleeping body.

Dei gave him a knowing grin. "My friend had too much to drink. I'm bringing her back to sleep it off, yeah."

"Uh-huh. And you?"

Maybe it didn't matter what Tobi and Dei planned to do with her, because the minute her father heard about this, she would be dead. "I'm…helping."

"I'm sure you are." The old man ducked his head a moment, as if in thought, and then he looked up at them with a shrewd smile. "That's the Yamanaka girl, you know."

Dei actually dropped a kiss on her forehead. "Yeah, I know. Pretty, hmm?"

"I'd hate for her father to find out about this…"

"How much?"

"300 ryou and I never saw a thing."

In her anger, Ino almost let Tobi's mind slip from her grasp. He reared up, punching, jabbing, seeking escape. She concentrated hard, pushing his consciousness back down. A kick on the leg interrupted her.

"Pay the man," Dei hissed.

Frantically, she patted down Tobi's pockets. Surely he had money somewhere? Nothing in his pants pocket, but she felt a bulge at his chest and pulled out a wallet. She pulled out 300 ryou. Should she say something? She should say something…

"You owe me, Sempai."

"Oh, don't worry," He winked at her. "You'll get your share, yeah."

The old man at the desk gave them a friendly wave and Ino swore that she'd find a way to get him back once this whole episode was finished with. She glared at him behind Tobi's mask and followed Dei to the stairwell.

"Tobi! Up here! Did you forget where the room was?" Dei's voice sounded annoyed, and he shifted her body in his arms a bit. "Open the door for me, hmm?"

"Yeah, of course." Tobi's voice was a bit strained. Ino hadn't quite gotten the timbre of it, but she hoped she was close. "Do you think the landlord suspected anything?"

"Hell, yeah. Why do you think he asked for extra money?"

"Then he'll leave us alone…"

"No he won't. He'll report us. I would, too, if it were me. We need to grab our stuff and get out of here."

"What about her?"

"Leave her here, yeah," But Dei's voice trailed off as they entered the door.

The room itself was unremarkable, a plain room of medium size, but standing by the window was a tall figure, swathed in the same kind of black-and-red cloak that she had seen Dei and Tobi wearing when they first met. However, it seemed like the man's head was engulfed within a large, leafy collar and his face was bisected dark green and white.

"Took you long enough, " the man said in a whispering echo. Then his voice changed to something almost metallic. "What do we have here? Did you bring me some supper?"

"Nothing for you, Zetsu-san." Dei kept a tight hold on her body, despite the fact that he was standing next to a chair where he could have set her down. "So have they arrived or not?"

"Yes," the whisper again, and then the growl. "Is that a hostage of some sort?"

Ino thought she had better say something to get the man off of the subject. "We were gathering information," she offered, "about the mission." Not that she knew what was going on, but it seemed a safe lie.

"Mission? Here? Are you angling to go after the Kyuubi again, Deidara-san? Itachi won't like that, not at all. He's rather possessive of that creature. Home village advantage and all that."

"Screw what he thinks, yeah. Besides, I thought our esteemed Leader had assigned Hidan and Kakuzu to take that on?"

"That has yet to be decided. So this girl knows something of the Kyuubi then?" The green man slid closer, a hand gently reaching out to touch her unconscious face. "Something we could use?"

Dei yanked her body away, fiercely. "I told you, the girl doesn't matter, yeah. Now where are we supposed to meet?"

Zetsu looked bored. "There's a stream-bed with a waterfall, some three miles from the village."

"That monument, you mean? The two guys in stone?"

"Gods, no. That's way out of your way. No, I meant the one off the road going towards the Mist Country. Kisame and Itachi are waiting for you there."

"Got it. And you?"

"I go where I am sent."

"What if I told you to go to Hell?"

Zetsu just laughed in a queer, hollow echo. "You'd be too late, Deidara-san."

The shadows of the room seemed to deepen and engulf the man.

"Whatever, yeah."

"Tobi-kun, you should keep an eye on this one." The metallic laughter hung in the

air long after his body had disappeared.

Dei finally set her body down, draping it gently on the chair. He rubbed his left arm, scowling fiercely. "Well, now that's done it. We gotta get going, yeah."

Her mind was reeling. Deidara. His name was Deidara. She knew that name, but where had she heard that name before? He said they were meeting Itachi and Kisame—the meeting earlier this week, the Hokage had mentioned them. And there were two others mentioned: Deidara of the Earth Country and Sasori of the Red Sands. But Sasori had been killed and his partner Deidara had fought Kakashi and was presumed dead.

Of course. Dei. As in Deidara. He was part of Akatsuki. She'd stumbled on something huge.

"Tobi, what did you do with my clothes? I had them on the balcony…" Deidara of the Earth Country did not look so dangerous now, as he stripped off his yukata and stalked across the room, passing her by to peer into some baggage set in the corner. He actually looked a bit vulnerable, naked except for the red loincloth covering his privates. A part of her smiled at that. The girls were always making bets, trying to figure out what kind of underwear the men were sporting. Dei didn't seem like a traditionalist to her, but one never knew…

And then she stopped herself right there. This man wasn't Dei, wounded bodyguard of the Tsuchikage. He was Deidara, of the Akatsuki, and everything he told her was probably a lie. She needed to take him down and get her information to headquarters.

"Here they are, finally!" The clothes had been laid across the bed, along with the colorful cloaks the two men had been wearing when she first met them. "I guess you found a dryer then, hmm?"

"Um," she answered, just to have something to say. How to manage this? Tobi was fighting her, so she couldn't use jutsu. He was bigger than Deidara, so she might be able to beat him in a physical fight, but she had no idea of his power and she was not that familiar with Toby's body. Plus, she would still be vulnerable after the transfer back…

"What the hell are you staring at, hmm?" Deidara had dressed quickly and was pulling his hair back into a ponytail. "I thought I already told you, I'm not into men. Get your things together! We need to go!"

There was another pile of baggage a few feet away from the things that Deidara had been looking through, so she assumed those were Tobi's belongings. She rolled them up neatly into a bundle and then took the larger of the two cloaks on the bed. Deidara grabbed his own cloak and swung it about his shoulders. He fastened it from the inside. Ino saw the fixture in Tobi's cloak and got it secured.

"Don't forget your hat, stupid."

She looked around, and Deidara, growling in exasperation, threw the hat at her, that strange, conical headdress that looked like something from out of the Rain country. She slipped it on and then looked down at her own body, slumped on the chair.

"Grab her, will you? I gotta concentrate for a moment, yeah."

"What? I thought we were going to leave her here, sempai!"

"Zetsu saw her."

"So?"

"So? You know what he's like!" Deidara glared at his partner and then shook his head. "We'll take her with us, yeah. We can dump her on the road. Those Leaf shinobi have got plenty of patrols around, someone is bound to find her. She doesn't know anything important." He almost sounded as if he was trying to convince himself.

Ino wasn't about to argue, so with Tobi's large hands, she picked her body up and slung it over her shoulder. It was an odd feeling, toting herself around, but there was no time to think. She followed Deidara out onto the small balcony.

He had pulled some clay out of a bag slung around his waist. He closed his hands around it and she could hear chewing sounds. Of course, she thought, the mouths on his hands. He closed his eye in concentration and then opened up his fist to reveal a small clay bird. The detail of the sculpture was exquisite. He set it down and made some hand motions and the bird began to grow.

"Here, gimme the girl."

"Sure, sempai."

He took her body and carefully set it on the tailfeathers of the clay bird. He pushed them around her, securing her. He climbed on the back of the bird and held his hand out to Tobi. "C'mon."

"I'm supposed to ride that thing?"

"Don't be such a pussy. We can't get good altitude with all this weight, but it'll get us over the walls and to the meeting spot. It was just dumb luck that we got into the village in the first place, hmm? We can't be seen leaving, yeah."

She followed him up and nearly lost her hold on Tobi as she concentrated the chakra in his knees so that he wouldn't slip off. A few hand-signals later and they were in flight.

"Keep a good grip," Deidara cautioned as the bird lifted rose high above the village. "If you fall off again this time, I am not going to go pick you up, yeah."

"I won't fall, sempai." She muttered as she concentrated both on controlling Tobi's chakra and his mind. His mask hid the tears that ran down his face with her effort.

Deidara, on the other hand, seemed relaxed. "I kinda wish I could have flown over this place by daylight. The lights make an interesting pattern, don't you think? That first Hokage of theirs must have been quite the artist."

Tobi's rage magnified. Ino choked as she struggled to keep him in check.

"You know, if we're going to continue to work together, you have got to do something about that airsickness of yours, yeah."

Ino realized just how fortunately she was that Deidara's contempt for Tobi kept him from picking up on her possession. She glanced behind to see her inert body wrapped in the tailfeathers of the flying sculpture. Her hair was whipping in the wind—it would take her hours to comb it out properly later. They flew in silence for some twenty minutes, until they closed in on the clearing that Zetsu had mentioned.

Deidara adjusted something on his mechanical eye. "Okay, I see them, just ahead," he shouted to her over the wind. "It won't be long now, yeah."

No, Ino thought, not long at all.


	11. Chapter 11

Love is Blonde

By Maria Szabo

Chapter Eleven

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

Author's note: Made some minor corrections to this chapter.

Yamanaka Ino, in possession of the body of Tobi, one of the members of the rogue ninja organization Akatsuki, gritted her teeth and focused all her concentration on trying to manage Tobi's chakra well enough that they could remain on the flimsy clay bird that was screaming down from the skies.

Her situation was dire and she knew it. The original intention had been to get out of an awkward situation, but for some reason, Tobi's partner Deidara was unwilling to set her unconscious body down long enough for her to break her jutsu, return and get away. At the current time, her sleeping form was wrapped carefully in the tail feathers of the clay bird on which they rode. The thought briefly occurred to her that she could possibly release her jutsu and then play possum until Deidara tossed her body, but she had no assurance that he would do so before Tobi reawoke. And while Dei-san seemed blissfully ignorant of her ploy, Tobi was fully aware of what she was doing. And he was angry.

There seemed to be quite a dichotomy between the silly, almost-stupid man she had known as Tobi and the fierce entity that she encountered in his head. His initial amusement at her tactic had swiftly turned to rage when he realized that he was not able to throw her out of his mind as easily as he thought. He was constantly pounding at her to let him go, and it took all of her technique to keep him under wraps.

She wished briefly that her skill level matched that of her father, Inoichi. He worked for the Hokage's interrogation squad and could not only control people by possession, but could also delve into their memories to withdraw their memories and secrets. It was a technique that took years to master and she had only just begun her work in that area. It was a pity, because her current victim seemed to have a lot to hide. She could see the vulnerabilities in his psyche that would have allowed her access, but she just did not have the skill level to take advantage of it.

There was another danger awaiting now. Deidara and Tobi were flying to meet their comrades, Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigake Kisame. Both were dangerous S-class ninja and well out of her league. Trying to manipulate Tobi and Deidara had been hard enough. Facing down Itachi and Kisame was beyond what she knew she could handle.

She gave herself a brief moment to panic, then resolved to make the best of the situation. She could not beat four members of Akatsuki, but if she played her cards right, she might be able to make it out alive. And maybe gain some valuable information in the process.

Deidara was guiding the clay bird down for a landing. It was a beautiful work of sculpture and Ino had been impressed at how easily Dei-san (DEIDARA, she reminded herself, DEIDARA!) had produced the work. It made sense, she supposed, that someone from the Earth Country would be able to manipulate clay (and stone? How far did his talents reach?), but there had to be more to his jutsu than that.

_Oh, much more than that,_ echoed a voice in her mind.

_Shut up, _she replied. _I'm not letting you go_.

_You stupid little bitch! You have no idea who you're dealing with, do you?_ Tobi's emotions bounced between outrage and amusement.

_I don't care. You can fight all you want to. You get free when I say __so._

Another wave of fury battered her and she lost control of the chakra that was allowing her to stay balanced on the clay bird. She fell, and unused to Tobi's larger form, landed in an ungraceful splat on the ground, head-first.

"What is it with you anyway, hmm?" Deidara complained as he hopped of the bird himself. He checked behind the wing where Ino-as-Tobi had been clinging. "If you've nicked this, I'm going to be really pissed, yeah. This is art, you know."

"I know, I know," Ino replied, because she had to say something.

_You keep telling me,_ Tobi suggested.

"You keep telling me," she repeated and was rewarded with a magnificent glare. She could feel Tobi laughing inside. So he really wasn't as stupid as he made out to be. And he obviously enjoyed ruffling his partner's feathers.

"Nice landing," came a gruff voice from behind, and she turned around to see a tall, muscular blue man smiling at her with very sharp teeth. His eyes were very small yet seemed to genuinely reflect his amusement. "He always this graceful, Deidara?"

"All this and more, yeah," Deidara replied sarcastically. "Why the hell did I get saddled with him anyway?"

"Because Sasori died, Kakazu hasn't managed to kill Hidan yet and last I heard, Orochimaru wasn't planning on coming back to the fold, so you got the new guy."

"Don't even mention Orochimaru to me, that asshole, yeah." Deidara muttered. "So you got the plans, hmm?"

"Oh, yeah," Kisame reached into the sleeve of his cloak and produced a scroll. "Everything you need should be on here. You shouldn't have any trouble. Last I heard, the Sanbi didn't even have a host. It'll be easy."

The former Mist shinobi bypassed Deidara's outstretched hand and tossed the scroll to Tobi. It seemed that Tobi wasn't the only member of Akatsuki that liked to bait Dei-san. Ino caught it deftly and slipped it into a side-pocket. These cloaks were full of pockets, it seemed, all out of the line of sight. Useful design. She'd have to remember that.

"Thanks, sempai!" she answered and tried not to flinch as the big man patted Tobi's shoulder. His hand smelled of dampness and salt, even here in the forest.

"Anytime. Welcome to the crew. It'll be nice having someone around with a sense of humor. Everyone is so damn gloomy around here. Work is supposed to be fun, you know?"

"Don't encourage him, hmm? He's bad enough as it is." Deidara removed his hat and flicked it towards the clay bird. It landed on the creature's beak.

"Don't get preachy on me, Deidara-san. My sword could use a snack." The great sword dangling from the tall shinobi's back gave a shiver, as if in agreement.

"Where's Itachi anyway, hmm?"

"Around here somewhere. He gets all emotional every time we come back here…well, as emotional as that guy gets, anyway. You'd think he was homesick or something."

"Wonder why? If I never saw Iwagakure again, it would be too soon, hmm. What a dump." Deidara considered the clearing, and then found a stone to sit on, cross-legged.

"Yeah, well. I've heard they've rebuilt it since you've been gone. That's where we're headed next, actually. I hate going that far inland." Kisame gave Tobi another friendly pat. "Wish I could go with you guys. Haven't seen the ocean in forever."

"Oh, you're going after the Yonbi, hmm?"

"Orders are orders. You know the host?"

"Roshi-san?" Deidara grimaced. "Cranky old bastard, yeah. You know, he told me my art was tired. Stupid traditionalist. I blew up his house before I left. Wonder why they didn't send me?"

"Probably because they'd kill you on sight? Just sayin'."

"Probably, yeah. I bet they've rebuilt the village by now. I hope they got a better architect than last time."

Ino took the opportunity to step a bit away from Kisame, who frankly creeped her out, and leaned against a tree, trying to look bored.

_Good move_, Tobi's voice echoed in her head, _although I'd step back farther. He's got a good reach with that sword of his._

_ Shut up,_ she replied, _I could care less what you think._

Another wave of anger. She shivered against it, but held him down.

Kisame seemed to notice Tobi's retreat, but just acknowledged it with another toothy smile. "He any good?"

"What, Tobi?"

"No, Yonbi's host."

"Oh, Roshi-san, yeah. Watch out for his lava technique. He's tricky. Don't let his age fool you. He may lack taste but he's not stupid. Good thing we got the Gobi already."

_Bi, bi, bi. Bi as in Tails? Three tails, four tails, five tails? _Ino wondered. _Tails of what? _

_You're forgetting Tobi_, hissed the voice in her head.

_Ten tails?_

_Ignorant slut. They don't tell you anything in that village, do they?_

Ino closed her eyes and concentrated harder. Tobi was just trying to make her angry, trying to punch a hole in the net she had him trapped in. If she kept her cool, it wouldn't work.

"What's with that girl?" a voice came from behind them. It had been years since she'd heard that voice, but she still remembered it. Uchiha Itachi.

He walked towards the group, gently pushing some branches out of his way. Itachi was taller than she remembered, and he seemed thinner. As he removed his hat, his pale face almost looked ill, but then that could be the cost of life on the run as an S-class criminal.

"Sempai got a souvenir," she joked, dryly. Deidara shot her a nasty look.

"Son of a...you didn't tell me you brought a girl!" Kisame almost ran towards the clay bird. "Just one? None for me?"

"Get your own, bastard."

"Deidara. That was foolish." Itachi seemed almost indifferent. For some reason, he barely glanced at Tobi, for which Ino was grateful. She'd heard stories about the powers of the sharingan, but the Uchiha clan had been remarkably closed-mouthed about the extant of their abilities. She had no idea if he would be able to tell at a glance that she'd possessed his teammate.

Deidara bristled. "First thing: you don't tell me what to do. Second thing: I didn't have much of a choice in the matter. She either came with us or became Zetsu's dinner."

"Oh, she's too pretty for that," Kisame agreed, as he brushed her tousled hair from her face. "Itachi, you should take a look at this one."

"We are in a hurry, Kisame."

"No, no, it's hilarious," he chuckled in a surprisingly pleasant laugh. "She's like a mirror-image of Deidara-san. Blonde pony-tail and everything."

"SHUT UP." Deidara rose from his seat on the stone and headed towards Kisame. "Get your hands off of her."

"Did you say blonde?" Itachi's voice almost betrayed some interest, and he walked to join the others.

Kisame just laughed some more. "You know, I really hate you pretty-boys. Regular guys like me and Tobi-kun never have a chance with you around."

"No kidding, sempai." Ino decided she'd better get closer, too. She'd look too suspicious standing too far away. "Women have no taste at all."

"I think they taste just fine, myself." Kisame turned with a smirk as Itachi drew nearer. "You know her? Kinda young, but you left, what, seven or eight years ago now, wasn't it?"

Itachi stared at her body for a moment, and then his lips tightened. "I know her. She was one of my brother's classmates. That's little Ino of the Yamanaka clan."

Deidara stalked close behind. "I'm warning you guys, this is none of your business..."

Suddenly, Itachi had Deidara by the neck, pressed up against the clay bird. "Kisame," he said, in that same quiet, bored tone. "Keep an eye on Tobi, will you? Something is very wrong here."

To Be Continued


	12. Chapter 12

Love is Blonde

Chapter 12

by Maria Szabo

(Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters belongs to Kishimoto Masashi and his publishers. This is a work of fanfiction, and no profit is being made save that of enjoyment.)

Author's note: Yeah, it's been awhile. Sorry, life got in the way.

That bastard had him by the throat with one hand. A weapon, probably a kunai, was pressed against the corner of his jawbone. The metal felt cold against his neck.

When Itachi made a grab for him, Deidara instinctively shut his eyes. He'd been caught up in Itachi's genjutsu before and didn't want to repeat the experience. He had been training his left eye since he'd lost to the Uchiha all those years ago, but at this point, he had been caught by surprise and he wasn't ready to try his luck against the Sharingan.

It was taking both his hands to try to wrest free of Itachi's grip enough to catch a breath. Otherwise, he could have merely pressed his hands against his sculpture and taken a bite of clay and then he'd have room to manuever.

"Ino-chan," his tormentor whispered, "Is that you in there?"

"What the hell are you talking about, hmm?"

The kunai dug into his skin. "I don't have time for this. Release him, or I'll kill the both of you."

In the distance, he could hear a dull thud on the forest floor.

"Kisame?" Itachi asked, keeping the kunai in place.

Deidara ventured a peek from behind the mechanical apparatus of his left eye. No luck. The bastard was still staring straight at him.

"Hey, I think Tobi fainted," Kisame's voice was colored with humor.

"What?" Itachi replied sharply and finally turned his head to look.

That was all he needed. He kicked out and managed to push Itachi off balance. The Uchiha recovered quickly, but not before Deidara's hand met the smooth clay of the bird (Shirotori, he called it, one of his better efforts, very nice lines, he was especially proud of the detail on the wings) and managed to take a bite of clay. It was only C1—he wasn't expecting to have to detonate—but it would be enough to let him get away.

With a grunt, Itachi came back at him. _Not good_, Deidara thought. _He's got the advantage on me with taijutsu. I need to get some distance. I can't concentrate enough to make a bomb if I'm busy fighting hand to hand._

Obviously, Itachi knew that, too. His right elbow made a smooth line towards Deidara's head, followed by a left first towards his torso. Deidara managed to slap both away but Itachi had closed in the distance between them. When Deidara tried to get his leg in position to kick back, in a blink of an eye, he found his leg swept. Itachi fell on him, hard, pinning him beneath his knee.

"So what's going on here? Are you two finished or what?" Kisame's hand was poised on the hilt of the greatsword slung across his back, his fingers tapping impatiently.

"Is he out?" Itachi asked, burrowing his knee further into Deidara's back. If he didn't already know that Itachi was a walking icicle, he would swear the cold bastard was enjoying this.

Kisame kicked Tobi's figure a couple of times. There was no movement. "Yeah, looks like."

"Hmph," Itachi eased his grip on Deidara's arm and rose. "I was certain it was you."

He fell face-first into the grass and came up spitting. "You son of a bitch! What the hell are you talking about, hmm?"

"Calm down. I needed to make sure."

"Of what?"

"That you weren't possessed." Itachi pulled his hand through his hair and sat down on the stone that Deidara had recently vacated. He looked tired. "That girl—she's from the Yamanaka clan. They specialize in mind-possession jutsu."

"What? Some kind of genjutsu?"

"Exactly. Takes a lot of specialized training. They usually work in interrogation. Surprised to see one out in the field."

"Probably still in training," Kisame suggested as he drew closer to take part in the conversation. He seemed to be finding the whole situation amusing.

Itachi shook his head. "A trainee that strong?"

"What? It's just Tobi." Deidara stood up and brushed off the grass and leaves he'd accumulated on his clothes during the fight.

The Uchiha looked up at him enigmatically. "He's stronger than you think. Was he acting oddly?"

He shrugged. "No more than usual. He's always weird, yeah."

Itachi directed his gaze at Tobi's fallen form. He seemed to be debating something internally.

"He is going to be alright, isn't he?"

"I think so," Itachi nodded slowly. "I've never experienced the Shintenshin no jutsu, but from what I understand, it has a time limit and certain weaknesses. Look at her. How long has she been unconscious?"

"Since…oh." Deidara's mind went back to the scene and how she had keeled over so suddenly. "That's right, yeah. Tobi wanted to drop her off at the hospital. Made no sense at all. That was her then, taking over Tobi, hmm?"

"Yes. The girl must have been desperate, to perform that jutsu in the open. Usually, the Yamanaka act in tandem with a partner. That's their weakness. But if they are protected, their jutsu can be very dangerous."

Deidara smiled. Ino hadn't done too badly, all things considered. If Itachi had not known about her family, she might have well gotten away with her scheme. Clever girl.

"So how long is Tobi going to be out?" Kisame asked. "We need to get moving and soon."

"Depends on the girl and how strong her jutsu was. I've heard her father can possess a man for more than a day. And I don't know what will happen if we just kill her while she's in another body."

He tried to imagine Ino-san's bright personality in Tobi's body. It might make for a better working environment, but he still preferred her with her curves, and soft skin and sweet-smelling hair. "Maybe we should wait and be sure."

"Do we have that kind of time?" Kisame growled.

Itachi's face showed no emotion as he slowly shook his head. He gestured suddenly to his partner. "Pick him up. We'll take Tobi with us for now and lay low. Deidara, you seem to have a soft spot for the girl…"

He flushed angrily but didn't deny it.

"Take her and wait until she comes around. That should mean she's back in her own body. Then dump her somewhere—I don't want you killing her until we know for sure she's out of Tobi's head. After that, we'll contact Zetsu and send him with a message on where to meet."

"Fine," he grumbled.

"Be careful," the red-eyed shinobi warned. "Bind her hands. Try not to meet her eyes. I don't think the Shintenshin is a eye jutsu, but just in case…"

"Yeah, yeah, I know my job, yeah."

Kisame pulled Tobi up and slung him over his shoulder, the one without his greatsword peeking over it. "It's a damn shame. Pretty girl like that. Would have been fun to play with her a bit."

"Just shut up."

The mist ninja's chuckle lightly echoed from the nearby branches. There was a brief scurry of footfall, a rustle in the leaves, and then Deidara found himself alone. He went back to his bird and considered the sleeping girl wrapped in its clay feathers. It was too dangerous to stay put while waiting for her to wake up, but if he took to the air and kept her where she was, he wouldn't be able to tell when she regained consciousness. Since he didn't know how her jutsu worked, he'd be leaving his back open to attack.

He pulled back the ends of Shirotori's tailfeathers and reached into his cloak, pulling out a length of cord. Binding Ino's hands, he scooped her up into his arms and climbed aboard the bird. With a sweep of its clay wings, the bird rose into the sky.

They had only been aloft for a few minutes when he felt her stirring against him. Her eyelids fluttered and she shook her head slowly.

"Shikamaru?" Her whisper was so soft that he could barely hear it above the wind.

It shouldn't have bothered him, but it did. "Who is Shikamaru, hmm?"

Her eyes flew open at that. Her hands pulled against her restraints and she tried to twist away from him.

"Now, now, Ino-san. Be good." He pulled her more tightly against him. "Don't want you falling, yeah."

"Dei-san…"

"Deidara, actually. But I don't mind if you keep calling me Dei-san. Sounds sweet when you say it." Itachi had mentioned avoiding her gaze, so he focused on her breasts instead. He had to look at something, after all.

"My face is up here, Deidara-san."

"And how do I know that you won't clobber me with some jutsu, hmm? Learned my lesson fighting that damn Itachi. I hate genjustsu."

"My technique doesn't work that way."

"Like I'll believe that, yeah."

Ino gave an audible sigh and he watched her chest shiver. Her breasts were such pert little things. "I'm telling the truth."

"Really. And who is this Shikamaru, hmm? The fat guy I saw in the clearing?"

"No. He's my other partner."

At that, he did look up and meet her eyes. "Ah, that's right. You Leaf shinobi work in three or four man units, don't you, hmm."

She obviously was annoyed. "Yes."

"So he's the one you usually wake up to?"

"Not like that!" Her face went bright red.

For some strange reason, her embarrassment cheered him. "Good. Now tell me the truth, Ino-san. Are you out of Tobi's head? Completely?"

Her eyes narrowed. "And if I am? Are you going to kill me?"

"I might." He leaned in very close. After all that had happened, he could still catch the scent of wildflowers on her.

She actually smirked. "Maybe I've still got a hold on him."

It was that smile that did it. She was in a bad way and she had to know that, but the girl wasn't about to stop scheming. If he wasn't careful, she'd take him down, commandeer the shirotori and fly her way back to Kohonamagakure. What a woman.

His head bent suddenly and he took her lips, smothering her startled cry. She tried to pull back, but he was having none of that. He slid a hand into that shining yellow hair of hers and held her in place as he explored her mouth further.

She was trying to resist, but he teased her a bit with his tongue and she relented, easing her lips open, sighing as he slipped his tongue in. She met it with her own, hesitant and unsure. He lost himself in her softness, until he felt the air swirling about them and realized that they were in freefall. The shirotori wouldn't stay in the air without some attention.

He drew back and focused his chakra, stabilizing their flight. Ino caught her breath in little gasps, which was quite the distraction.

"Dei-san, what are you doing? You don't really want…"

Growling, he tightened his arms around her and resumed his kiss, showing clearly what he did want. This time, Ino enthusiastically responded, opening her lips, twining her tongue around his. She moaned as he left her mouth and worked his way down to her throat.

"Dei-san…"

"Hmm?" The skin on her neck was so soft. He nipped it lightly.

"My hands…please…"

The part of his mind that wasn't figuring out a way to land and continue his seduction pondered her request. As much as he'd like to think that she wanted to use her hands on him, she was probably just uncomfortable or even planning a way to attack him. Still, it might be amusing to give her that chance.

He stole another kiss. "I warn you, if you're up to something, I'm very good at fighting off genjutsu."

"I bet you are." The girl raised her bound hands. He drew out a kunai and cut the bonds, waiting to see what she would do.

Ino looked down at her hands and back at him. He could see the indecision on her face. He watched her closely. Would she fight? Genjutsu, ninjutsu, taijutsu? He could easily counter any one of them, and certainly go on the offensive, but he wanted to see what she came up with.

She surprised him, snaking her arms around his neck, pressing herself against him, raising her face in invitation. Laughing, he eagerly accepted her offer, his hands moving over her body as if he was shaping another one of his sculptures. Her curves were delightful, exquisite, perfectly proportioned.

The clay bird sank lower in the sky as he lost himself in her. His excitement rose as he thought of the things he could teach her, the way her face would look when he showed her his jutsu wasn't just for making explosives, the sound of her cries driving him onward and how it would feel when he released himself, with the sweet scent of her curled up against him afterward. And there could be so much more. His mind swirled with the possibilities.

If only he had the time.

He stopped and took her face between her hands. She met his gaze directly. It was as if their masks had been removed and they were no longer shinobi, but simply a man and a woman together. In that single, perfect moment, he felt what love was supposed to be. It was truth and joy, need and acceptance. It was Art, in its purest form. And her, only her. Only now.

"Thank you, Ino," he murmured against her lips, as he drew her face back to him. Then he shoved her out into the open air.

Bang.


End file.
